Mere memories, that. Figments long gone…
But sometimes—perhaps al the time—Kian's body remembers. His hands will shake at night. His tongue will burn periodically. And his back will curl instinctively…
And this was only the beginning. Because, even now, he harbors little memories from before…
Is it necessary to know everything from before? His hands curl and release. Curl. Then release.
When he's evolved. When it's been so long…
His claws carefully tap, then retreat from Ethan's sleeping forehead.
Regardless, that was the start of an inconceivable friendship between Tristan, the most notable of cultivators, and Kian, the irredeemable shard—
A moan. And Ethan's lids slowly lift; his hand instinctively shuttering out the light.
"What happened?" He whispers, disoriented by the sun.
"So fragile. Your body. Even a little teleport left you weak." Kian grins. But his eyes hold no true sympathy; the green so vivid a green it's like ice.
"What? Tele—teleport?!" He springs to his feet; his eyes popping upon seeing the trees. "Where…Where are we…?"
"No, forget that! What about that father daughter pair?!" His head whips frantically from side to side. "What happened to them?"
"Hmm?" Kian chuckles. "Ah. Them." He turns up a hand elegantly. "Well. Just what should be done with them…?"
"You're not going to…do something…to them, will you?"
Kian walks to Ethan's side; slyly laying his head upon his shoulder. "I don't know. What do you think I should do?"
Ethan's heart's beating. Beating. Fiercely, heavily beating as Kian's breath hits his neck; his lips so close to Ethan's skin that his scales ripple in response.
Of course, he keeps it hidden from Ethan's innocent, naive eyes…
Tension. Silence. And the sun that's blistering their eyes—
"I'll make it easy for you, dear," he whispers; his human pupils glowing—then splicing—
And bodies fall hard from the sky!
Or not; Kian's dimensional pocket closing even as the two scramble to their feet, hastily backing away.
"Where—where are we?! What are you—what are you planning to do?!" The father shields his daughter; his heavily bearded face trembling as he looks from Kian, then Ethan, then back to Kian again—
But Kian shrugs indifferently; cocking his brow at Ethan's increasingly widening eyes…
***
Kian's grinning as he innocently leans against a tree off to the side.
Gods! This man! Where exactly was he hiding them? And how?
What exactly does he expect from me? Why is he doing this at all? He could've left them there. He could've abandoned me to that woman. I'm certain.
He could've dominated us all.
But I ignore that bitter truth for now.
"Calm—calm yourselves," I say, raising my hands in surrender. "We're not trying to attack you—"
"You're with them! Aren't you—?!"
"Father." I can see the girl's hand gripping her father's back. "Father! He—"
But he's pushing and pushing her farther behind him; trying to keep my eyes from falling upon her pretty face—
I retreat a step, keeping my hands raised.
"I say, father!" She stomps her foot; quickly dragging him by the beard as the birds sound an alarm from above.
"Ow ow ow! Quit that, girl!" His head's rocking as she pulls. He struggles to keep a steady eye, trying to push her away without hurting her. "Do you want to us to die?! We're alone here! Nobody's coming to save us—"
"He," she says, pointing at me with a wild finger, "helped me—"
"Hurry now, get back!"
She sighs. And pats his back. "Father. He. Saved. Me." She hugs him from behind. "I'm alright, father. He saved you, too…Please, father, I'm more worried about you…I don't want to see you like that again!"
He stiffens. And crosses his arms; eyeing us cautiously. "Alright. Fine. You saved her. But what the hell are you trying to do taking us out here?! And—And—!"
He catches his breath. I put down my hands. "Sir. We're," I nod at the (distracted by flowers) Kian, "not planning anything. I don't even know why all this happened in the first place…Truly, I don't know anything…"
"You don't know—"His voice trembles. "You don't know anything?!" He sighs. And backs up against a tree, dragging his daughter alongside him.
"Why did you help us?" He's watching me; warily, wearily, guarding against me.
It's understandable. Completely. I slowly sit on the ground, laying my hands carefully upon my lap. "I couldn't ignore your daughter."
His cheek tics. "Everyone else did. What are your intentions—"
"Father."
He blows out a breath. "I don't know why you did it…but thank you. Thank you for saving my daughter. Thank you for saving me." He doesn't bow. Just nods heavily.
"It wasn't all me." I turn to Kian. But he ignores us all. What will it take for him to be interested in something? For him to truly understand or sympathize at all…
But I don't want him to know me at all.
I feel weak. In my stomach. It has to be the poison. It has to be…
"You say you aren't with them?"
"Father, he killed—"
"Oy. Quit interrupting me." He pets his daughter's hair. "I'm getting to it, alright?"
I clear my throat. "I'm not with anyone," I say, crossing my feet as if in meditation—
"I suppose that means you're not affiliated with them cultivators, then?" His arms tighten.
I pause. And hesitantly cock my head. It wasn't a simple attack? And cultivators…
I raise my knees, holding them. Better not to imitate that in this man's presence. It would be detrimental, indeed.
What hubris. The rules just don't apply to them; it's the fall of human kind…
Immortality seekers…Of course, I can't stop the power running through my veins, either…Not anymore.
And not every one is bad…My brother, he, too went mad…
"Them bastards—" He breathes heavily. "They kidnapped my niece!"
I stiffen. "Kidnapped…your niece?" Sounds familiar. But it's not them. I shiver. Perhaps I'll always think of my kidnappers…never will I be free of them…
"Damn right, they did!" He clenches his fists and grows silent.
I wait. After all, his story is far from done.
The air circles between us. And leaves fall. But Kian's not watching. In fact, he's whistling; chewing nonchalantly on grass.
Perhaps he cares little for others. Perhaps he doesn't care at all.
"We didn't know at first. I—" Tears fall. He wipes his eyes. "I'm Wilks; a baker. In a village far from here…this is my daughter, Hannah. She…she was there when it happened."
Hannah's eyes fall.
"She was there when my niece was taken…"