Sore, bruised, aching all over and still the happiest she’d ever been, Isa sat on a balcony overlooking the Red Light District with a small little sparkle in her eyes as she watched the sunrise.
“Don’t you think you’re overworking yourself?” the small chirpy voice of the boy Kain intruded on her moment of silence.
“Huh?” She spun her head around to meet her friend's concerned gaze, “what makes you think that?”
“I can see you holding your neck, you’re injured, aren’t you?” he was right, her neck ached something fierce, her whole body had felt as though she’d jumped down to the bottom of a dry well and had been forced to climb out with nothing but her bare hands. That is precisely what happened, but she wasn’t about to tell him that.
“I’ll be fine, I’m just a little tired is all,” her eyes shone bright despite the dark circles that lined them, “I need to get strong, and I think it’s working.”
He looked at her, his eyes weighing heavy on her with pity, “please don’t over do it, Isa, you’re just a kid.”
With a groan and roll of her eyes, she swung her feet around from the edge of the balcony and hopped over beside the concerned boy. She gave him a thumbs up as she flashed the most sincere smile her face could muster, “I’ll be okay!” she frowned and caster her eyes away, “I have to be, I gotta get this thing under control,” she thought back to that day that the shadow manifested itself in her mind, frightening Josie and herself with its monstrous rage, “I, I just want to be normal.”
“We’ll never be normal, Isa,” he of course spoke of the fact that they both were alters. Beings branded as demons by the rest of the world, the two of them shared this fate as did the woman Isa now called mother. The night she saved Kain and those other boys she had paid no mind to the fact that he was also a demon like her, perhaps because she was too preoccupied with saving that poor little girl who had been kidnapped in the princes’ place. Upon meeting Kain again, she was surprised, and possibly even excited, but again too distracted to really appreciate their connection. Now that she had time to spend with him, she found herself longing to be around him as much as possible when she wasn’t training. Maybe it was solidarity, or maybe something else, but she felt comforted by his presence.
“Hey, umm can you, can you give me a hug?” Her sheepish request was immediately met with open arms as the boy clung to her.
“You are strong, okay, Isa?” he reassured the girl as he clung to her tightly, “you’re one of the strongest people I know.”
“Thanks, Kain,” she whispered, “I really appreciate that.”
As the sun lifted higher into the pale cloudy morning, Isa and Kain walked together through the city, hiding their silver hair beneath their hoods. The cold icy grasp of winter was upon them, and the city looked gray under the overcast sky as scarce rays peaked out from the gaps between the clouds. Even in the bitter cold, people still flooded the streets once the two had left their quiet little corner of the city. Isa lowered her hood further over her face as she began to notice the unsavory glances directed her way. Kain, however, ignored everyone but Isa, taking her hand and walking with a gleeful stride, practically skipping as the two marched together.
“Hey Isa, if you’re feeling sore I know a guy who gives really good massages,” Kain offered.
“Are you sayin you wanna feel me up?” She stuck her tongue out at him playfully.
“No, I mean it,” he blushed and shook his head, “he’s really good,” and then he added with a smug little grin, “and he’s pretty cute too.”
“Pass, I don’t like boys,” her blunt statement hit Kain over the head like a surprise attack from behind.
“Oh, I see..”
Sensing his dejected tone she squeezed his hand, “I mean, I like cute girly boys like you silly.”
“Really?” Kains eyes widened with a spark of hope.
"I mean, yeah, probably," Isa shrugged, "I think girly boys are still fine, I just don't like the manly type, ya know?"
Kain hugged her neck and giggled, "so you think I'm cute?"
She pried herself away from him, "gah, watch it, people are starin at us Kain."
"So? Let them stare, I'm with you so I don't care," he clung to her arm and pressed his face to hers, "besides, you're a girl right? So technically it's not gay."
"Pft, likin me is gay noatter what," Isa rolled her eyes and accepted she was not escaping Kains affection. "Besides, you sure you're not a girl yourself?"
"Hmmm, I mean, I think I'm a boy, but like not a normal boy," he pursed his lips as he gave it thought, "kinda feels like boy and girl are too constraining of labels, if that makes sense."
"I guess so, but I'm pretty happy bein a girl," she was pretty resolute on that, perhaps because she had to fight so hard to get people to accept her as such.
"Hmmm, what if there was like another word, like girlboy, or something like that?"
"How about for now we just call you what you are, a cutie," Isa poked his side.
Kandi kissed her cheek, causing her to blush, "hehe, you think I'm cute~"
"Don't let it get to your head, you goofball," she turned her gaze downwards, "and like, go easy on stuff like that, people are gonna think we're weird."
"They already think we're demons, how much weirder can we be?"
Isa thought about it as they continued their walk, Kain clinging tightly to her, despite her objections.
***
It was terribly cold, but Voxie didn’t mind it too much, it simply reclined in a naked tree amidst the city center and watched as pedestrians carried on their way. The trek back to the city from the church in Alest took them far longer than they had liked, pushing back the timetable of their mission greatly. That being said, it was tired, emotionally more so than physically, yet exhausted all the same. As much as it wanted to press on with the task at hand, it also needed time to unwind.
“Voxie, shouldn’t we be going?” Rayle reminded it as it slowly drifted to sleep in it’s perch.
“Give me a bit, I just need to sleep for a month or so and I’ll be fine,” he giggled and added, “not like that dumb ol’ sword is just gonna get up and walk away.”
“You are not taking this seriously enough, sweetie,” she argued.
“And you’re taking it too serious,” it stuck its tongue out and closed its eyes, “as long as the sword’s got the heart, no one else is gonna be able to get it. And I doubt the anointed one is going to just pop out of the snow and claim it,” it let out a small little yawn and pulled its hood over its face, “I go nini now.”
“Voxie!” her objection was drowned out by a much louder clamor coming from the streets below.
“Demon!” a gaggle of men shouted as they chased a child running down the street.
“Voxie, that child!” Rayle beseeched her partner.
“Yep, I know,” dropping to a tree branch below it, Voxie then leapt to a nearby rooftop, before hopping down to the street corner, where the fleeing demon boy stumbled to the ground as his pursuers gained on him.
“Excuse me~” Voxie immediately stepped out in front of the path of the Shepherds who had been chasing the boy, stretching its limbs and yawning, deliberately tripping the two in the lead.
“Step aside boy!” a third Shepherd barked, while the two fallen ones picked themselves back up.
Voxie tilted its head and frowned, “huh? What do you mean, you guys bumped into me.” As Voxie played dumb, the child scrambled to his feet and ran.
“He’s getting away!” the third Shephered attempted to pursue him, but Voxie stumbled forward blocking his path.
“Oops, sorry, I lost my balance there,” it giggled, “my baaad.”
The Shepherd seized Vox by the shoulder, “you’re interfering with an arrest, move if you know what’s good for you boy!” They attempted to push it aside, but Voxie’s body stood resolutely still, his deceptive strength far greater than the mans.
“Wha? Arrest? I don’t know whatcha mean though, I’m just passing through.”
“The demon got away,” one of the Shepherds Vox had tripped muttered as he helped the other one up.
“Damn it!” the apparent leader of the group cursed, “you aided a criminal’s escape, I hope you know what that means for you.”
“What, just cause he’s a demon that makes him guilty? Since when are you Shepherds able to just declare people criminals?”
“Our authority is granted to us from the divine, the king is not greater than God.”
Voxie tilted its head in the opposite direction this time, “huh, that sounds an awful lot like treason tho?”
“Brothers, when one is ignorant of the law, is it not our job to inform them?” a fourth Shepherd approached, wearing a more ornate cloak than the rest, “it is not a matter of law or authority, but our mission to cleanse this world of impurity. The demon steals because it has no other means to feed itself, however should we give it a new home and instruct it in the living word, then it will be a sinner no more.”
“Give it a new home is an awfully pretty way to say enslaving someone,” Voxie glowered at the priestly man.
“Our methods may seem harsh, but they come from a place of love. The Living Word of the Great Shepherd calls to all the children of this world, human, Ele, kitkind and even demon. Though not all are as open to receiving the lord's love as others. In such cases we must use different methods to ensure the best outcome.” The man spoke with a sickly sweet smile, malice emanating from him with each word he spoke. Curiously, he was not consumed by the malice, but seemed almost as if he was one with it. Regardless, Voxie did not like him. Had there not been so many witnesses, it had half the mind to call out Raylelael and strike down the priest before he became consumed by the malice he carried inside him.
“Guess none of that really matters in the end, kid got away and I had nothing to do with it,” Voxie shrugged, keeping up his ignorant charade.
“So it would seem,” the priest slighted his eyes and gave one last nasty fake smile, “come brothers, there are others in need of receiving our lord’s blessing.”
“Yes, brother Matthew,” the others bowed their heads and followed behind like a line of ducklings following their mother, or more accurately, sheep blindly following their Shepherd.
“They push their authority too far,” Rayle clicked her tongue, “I’m surprised they haven’t stretched the king's patience.”
“Honestly, he’s probably all for it,” Vox sighed as he turned on its heels and looked towards the direction the demon fled, “I can talk a big game against them all I want, doesn’t change the fact that the Shepherds really are the ones running this city.” In the years it spent in the Nameless Nation, Voxie had learned quite a deal about the history of the Royal family, and the Shepherds.
Several decades ago, another royal family had ruled the Nameless nation, but after a revolution that led to the execution of the former king, several other factions had attempted to take control in the absence of a royal family. The current King, Marquess Oden Bonedarte the first, had been a general in an unaligned army, who with the aid of mercenaries from Erif, successfully fought off the warring nations and claimed the throne. The conflict had been known as the ‘Ignoble War’, and had only truly come to an end when the Shepherds aligned themselves with King Marques and anointed him. That of course would explain why the king allowed the Shepherds to hold so much power, but regardless it felt as if their authority contested that of the king, and if there was one thing Voxie hated, it was religious groups with unchecked power.
“So was that demon her?” Rayle asked.
Voxie shook its head, “nope, they were too young to be her,” the little wanderer began to follow the path they believed the child to take, “still, I’d like to make sure they got away safe, and it has been a while since I’ve seen my friends in the Fire Pit.” It remembered the first time it had wandered into the Western Quarter, the Red Light District. It had just regained consciousness after having arrived in that world, and didn’t really understand just what was going on. In some ways it was rather embarrassing, having probably appeared like some kind of drunkard when he first talked to that prostitute named Kara. Returning months later however, it had been reunited with Kara, luckily able to make a much better second impression than its first.
With her help, Vox was able to find the underground network of spies and other dissenters of the law, known simply as the “Fire Pit”. Arasta and her spies had played a large part in helping it track down the piece of the Goddess’ heart it had been looking for. In exchange, Voxie passed along any information about the Shepherds and the Crown that it came into along its own search. The mutual aid was nice, but more than anything Voxie had come to enjoy the camaraderie with that enigmatic woman.
Following the winding streets that slowly grew more weathered, until the city took a drastic transition into an abysmal state of decay, it found its way into the Red Light district. Despite the ugly architecture, litter, graffiti and other unpleasant sights, Voxie found a small sense of beauty in it, a sort of ‘wabi-sabi’ as it liked to say. Slowly but surely this place had become a home away from home for it. Not that Voxie had a home, the wanderer was never afforded such a luxury.
Once they arrived, the wanderer headed straight for Kara’s brothel, or more accurately the apartments above it.
“It’s been too long, Voxie,” Kara giggled as she greeted her friend at the door.
“Honestly I lose track of time, so I’ll take your word for it,” it said, half joking.
Letting Vox inside, she pulled a chair out for it at a small table, “so what brings you to my humble little home? Is this a personal visit, or have you finally decided to take me up on my offer?”
“No, no, it’s personal,” it waved its hands blushing, unsure if Kara was teasing him or not, “though I did run across another alter today, they were being chased by some Shepherds,” it told her as it took a seat.
She frowned, her normally sparkling eyes dim with concern, “it has been happening far too often lately, honestly it’s gotten to the point I don’t feel safe allowing my sweet boys to go out into the city alone.”
“They got Josie and Darius though, right?”
She shook her head, “my brother is away on business at the moment, that leaves Josie. She however is, for lack of a better word, frail, I do not believe she’d be able to protect them were things to get physical.”
“Valid concern, but also I think people are just less likely to try something as long as she’s there,” Voxie countered.
“That may be so, but there is no telling what could happen if things continue this way.”
Voxie nodded and sighed. Every world it had been too was unique, and yet every world shared a common problem, the problem of othering those societies deemed as different, and punishing them for it. The witches of Eforde, the demon’s of Nu-Eden, and alters of this world.
"Perhaps it would be best to put our mind off that for now," Kara stood up and walked towards a small fridge in the corner of the room, "I was about to prepare dinner for the boys, there should be plenty enough for you if you would like to stay," she offered.
"Sure, wouldn't hurt to have something, though I don't technically need to eat, so I'll only take a little."
"Oh? Do you really not need food to survive?"
Voxie shook its head and patted it's tummy, "not really, I don't actually have anything like organs or other stuff like that, so food just kind of disintegrates inside of me. I enjoy eating though."
Kara laughed, "how very odd, if that is the case I'll give you a smaller serving," she pulled some ingredients out of the fridge and got to work chopping vegetables.
"Just veggies?"
"Isa is supposed to be coming by today, I always make sure to cook vegetarian for her," Kara answered.
"That's pretty thoughtful, considering she doesn't need food anymore either," Vox chuckled nervously as it heard Rayle clear her throat from inside her Carta, "I mean, ummm so just how common are alters anyways?"
"Oh? Why do you ask?" Kara threw the vegetables into a pot, added broth, salt and a small amount of milk and lit the stove.
"I was just wondering," Voxie twiddles its fingers as it spoke, "I've become quite fascinated with them since I met Isa for the first time."
"Well personally I only know a handful, that being Isa, Kandi, and of course our mutual friends in the fire pit, but I have run across others from time to time," Kara tapped her finger on her lower lip as she tried to think, "perhaps I would say, for every fifty or so people in the city, there is perhaps one demon."
"You made that statistic up, didn't you?"
"Saw right through me?" Kara laughed and took her seat across from Vox, "I would say they are uncommon, but not so much so that you would never meet one."
"Well I've met at least five since I've been here, and then there's the prince," Voxie counted on his fingers.
"So then you know about the prince?"
"Mhm, met him after Isa rescued Nioto's daughter," Voxie smiled, "there was something so incredibly familiar about him…"
It recalled the day they met, seeing the little prince for the first time. He had been clinging tightly to Nioto’s side, hiding behind her until he saw Quinn come out from behind Voxie. Both Nioto and the prince had rushed over to hug the girl, crying tears of joy as they held her tightly in their arms.
“Bonbon?” Vox questioned the second it had seen the little prince.
“Huh? No, my name is Oden,” the confused prince looked up at the wanderer for a moment, before returning his attention to Quinn. As extraordinary as the encounter was, it stuck in Voxie’s head. It had no idea why it called him that, all it knew was the name felt right. Whether the prince knew it or not, he was indeed a Bonbon, whatever that meant.
Vox’s train of thought was interrupted by the sounds of voices in the hallway.
“I’m telling you, he’s really good though.”
“I’m not about to pay some kitkind boy to feel my body up.”
“It’s a massage, and he does it for free.”
“He could pay me for all I care, ain’t doin it,” the door opened, and Isa entered the room alongside another alter, “I’d sooner let you give me…” she stopped mid-sentence as she saw Vox sitting there at the table.
“Hi,” it chirped, “how have you been?”
She stared for a few seconds, her brain catching up, before yelling, “it’s you!”
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