Mikki observed the papers with a smile on his lips, now this was indeed interesting. Very intriguing if he was honest, extremely so, so much it could almost distract him from his hunt. Sitting on his snow-white couch, arms spread out, legs crossed, he put the papers down in Front of him and then looked up at his wall. Staring at it he tried to find the connection.
The Connection that would give him the first trail for blood. His desired kind and no else, he loved the hunt and Titania had proven to be, if not the cleverest, capable if a bit fumbling. She was prey worthy of hunting. She was no victim.
There was a picture of her pinned up on the wall, smiling vibrantly. Next to it one showing the Boy, taken from distance during their outing. His blue eyes were carrying a shade of darkness, his face captured in a moment of blankness, the seriousness making him appear older. Mikki had the image researched as soon as he came back home; this boy was something else, different.
The results of the investigation had uncovered utterly nothing. A blank slate, no birth certificate, no name, no origin, no identity. As if he started truly living on the day he entered Tarajan, that was when the first record of him appeared. Not a single image in the vast archives of information throughout the city from before that time. It should be impossible, it had to be impossible. No one escaped them so completely, no one should be an utter phantom like this. Such that they did not even know what he was.
Human Monster, he was not even sure about that.
Dex. Short for Dexter, but he did not even know if that was to be the Boy's real name. All he did know was that the boy was an other, in a fundamental way. It grated on every single one of his nerves.
But he was powerful.
A power to be watched.
No matter his ability or identity, if he had been powerless he would have been nothing but a mere inconvenience. Not this one though; he was power and this boy was not no one. the shields in his mind were too strong. Not all of it could have been the effect of protection. He gave off a feeling of such otherness, the Tarajan had to have been aware. So why did they allow him close? Why did they seem to do nothing about it?
He either had something on them or he was bound by promise. But something about him, it felt like there was more to it. A lot more. He had not allowed himself such thoughts during their meeting but now that he was here, alone he could question it, ask himself.
His phone made a small sound, and he picked it up.
Meet 16
He frowned and looked at the clock, half an hour until it was four. No more time for thinking if he wanted to be on time, and that person valued punctuality. Standing up, he gathered his papers and pinned them to the wall, one after another. It was text walling it, but next to the images and pictures already gathering there it resembled a shine in a certain sense.
Well, one could not deny it is a shrine, a shrine dedicated to bring down evil.
Turning, he took his mantel and spotted a dark spot on the wall from his door handle with a frown.
I need some paint, it is uncomfortable.
The spot was unccanny, and it tingled in the back of his head. Shaking it he stepped outside, into another world, one where he had to be another person. With a smile he greeted his neighbors, who politely greeted back as he walked down the stairs and out onto the streets.
He passed by a bakery, a delicious scent was coming from it, and made his way to the bus station. Stepping inside, he held on a metal rail, declining as one of the people in the ability-less seats tried to Stand up to make room for him.
Disembarking two stops later, he was in the central city. The glass roof of Five Halls glittering in the distance, he made his way through the crowds towards it. Making a stop at an alley and taking a shortcut between two main streets. Left and right small stores lined up and a door announced in a corner.
Sweet and Delicious
Mikki opened the door and a bell rang as he walked up to the counter, “I am searching for some Gianduiotti Chocolate*.” He said and smiled, “Have you got some? It is a gift.”
The woman behind the counter smiled and nodded, “Sure, we have some, which type.”
“Fondente**, Three Colored Dream*** too if you have one, and a bit of a traditional type.”
Behind him the shield announcing they were open for business was flipped, good thing he was the only customer right now, or else he would have had to wait.
The woman dissolved in Front of him, first turning blurry and then re-taking Form. A taller one, and he found himself being smiled down at by a tall woman with a giant scar running across her face, her dark brown eyes glittering mischievously.
“Hey Mikki, the Boss is waiting in the back.” She said and threw him a piece of chocolate. “Here you go, Gianduia, you love that stuff.”
“Sure I do.” He muttered and bit into it, the delicious taste of three different and matching types of pure Nougat melting on his tongue.
“Mikki, I see you have received my message.” An elderly man came out from the back.
MIkki bowed his head, “Yes.”
“Good, how is your progress with Titania Tarajan?”
“Not very fruitful so far.”
The other party nodded, “Well we have never expected it to be easy, she is a guarded girl, and not a stupid one, but she is still a mere fourteen years old. Eventually you will get her, she is valuable.”
“An Oath Mage.” He nodded, “I know.”
“We need her genetic material for the most important of the City Government. With it, we may actually achieve the power to rule the major families and finally bring back real order to this city. They have been allowed to run free for far too long.” He passed Mikki a paper who skeptically read through it.
“This is dangerous.” He concluded.
“Maybe, but it can bring us victory and finally eliminate the Tarajan, which would be only the first of many steps.”
“Will the Zhang cooperate?”
“Indeed, they cooperate, but we do not trust them. You cannot trust men that kill their own siblings for power, they are a bloodthirsty lot. Lumiere refused, but it matters little.”
They redirect the monsters from the Zhang borders to the one from the Tarajan. The Tarajan have the longest borderline, they also have a high number of attacks on a regular basis and are highly trained. A slight increase will have no real impact, for it to be troublesome it needs to be done on a giant scale.
“It is to tire the Tarajan troops out,” He muttered, “And then take them when they are weakened.”
“Indeed, in fact the attacks have already started getting to them, and their equipment is constantly worn down. They have to repair it. While Chrysamte Tarajan is an excellent crafter, she is the only true higher level crafter they have. The rest are mid to low level Crafters and will be streched to the limit with enough pressure and one person cannot compensate it all.. With the obstruction of their income sources, we will corner them like the gutter rats they are.”
It will work, they have discarded any intention of civility by now, but if the borders break it will destroy the weaker zones, the slums and working quarters. Losing the Slums is no hardship, but the working quarters might be.
“The working quarters, it would be troublesome to lose them.” He said, and the other party shrugged their shoulders.
“Not really; there are enough useless humans searching for work, and they will come soon enough even if we lose these Zones. Even better if we get rid of such useless genes; sometimes such minor sacrifices need to be made.”
“I understand,” Mikki said and bowed.
Still the working quarters and slums are home to 30 percent of the population, if this goes south…..no matter how evil the Tarajan, this is a risk.
“Your only job, Mikki, is to get close to Titania Tarajan and either capture her or gain her trust. The bastards already know of our intentions, either they give us the girl or we will increase our efforts. Not that we would ever give them peace.” He clapped his hands behind his back, “The Council agrees, the Tarajan must be eliminated at all costs; they threaten the peace and order in this city. They could spark a rebellion with their mere existence and have been allowed to go unfettered for far too long.”
With a batch of chocolate and his new papers, he meandered home. A child ran past him, black haired and green-eyed. Green-eyed. He smiled. Green-eyed like Titania. He just needed to get her and all would be well, the order would be back to how it should be.
The doom of Tarajan was only getting closer and closer. They would fall, they had to fall.
He stepped back into the Bus and rode home, humming a tune he did not remember where he knew it from. Once he was back in his room, he hung up his jacket and then walked back into the living room. The images and writings already stuck on the wall were joined by another tidbit on his collection.
* A type of italian brand chocolate that is usually only found in speciality shops
* * bitter chocolate
*** Tripple layered nougat goodies
