Derrex walked up to the door boldly, handed the man a set of tickets and waited impatiently. Xania stood behind him, watching. The man took his time, looking the tickets over and comparing them to an open book in front of him. Finally, he signed the bottom of the tickets and handed them back to Derrex.

“An awfully long way to bring a boy to shop,” he snarled.

Derrex glared at him, silent.

The man took a step back and said nothing more. Derrex opened the door and ushered Xania through it. She did her best to hide her shock, but did miserably. Stalls ran the length of the building, reaching four stories high. Each floor holding different vendors and their wares. The upper levels were accessible by ladder or a hand operated elevator. In the open area at the center of the building there were pens holding various types of animals. There was too much noise, motion and stink to be closed in, but it was a wonder nonetheless.

She leaned in close to him and asked “Why are we here?”

Putting his lips close to her ear, he answered, “I need to get you a new identity.”

Derrex gently cupped her elbow and she flinched. She started to pull away. But, Derrex’s hand held her gently. His fingers rested in the hollow places of her joint; filling them, napping there. She relaxed her arm into his palm. He made no motion to guide or direct her through the crowd. She stood frozen while she thought. She wasn’t sure what to do.

His mouth was close to her ear again. His breath was warm against her.

“We need to go to that stall,” he said as he gestured.

With Derrex at her side, she wove through the crowd, giving wide berth to the animal stalls. She didn’t like their smell and wouldn’t get close unless she had to. Xania stopped again, still unsure which direction to take them in order to work them through the crowd. Derrex made no move to hurry her.

Xania looked around. There was plenty to keep her attention. To her right, a small woman struggled to keep hold of a fat child’s hand. Xania wondered if she was the child’s mother. She guessed not. Beyond that was a lizard-like creature buying brightly colored feathers. He ruffled each one with a long curved claw. Beside the lizard man was a dark boy looking at colored glass. Xania winced when the boy cut his finger on a sharp edge. The boy gave no response, but promptly paid 6 silver for the small blue shard. The boy turned and began moving through the crowd. He seemed to get larger as he moved further away from her. When he looked back over his shoulder at her, he no longer had the face of a child. Did he look at her?

“Hey,” Derrex said, breaking her from her thoughts before she’d begun to convince herself she had seen nothing.

“We need to move or we’ll get spotted by the Weeders,” he whispered.

He scanned the crowd quickly then returned his gaze to her. A reflex. He’d been doing this too long. She wondered if she would be like him some day…

Leaning against him, she took a deep breath. She hadn’t realized that she had been holding it. Feeling a little dizzy, she forced herself to move through the crowd again.

“What’s a Weeder?” She asked quietly, into his ear. Xania was struck by the smell of him. He must have been wearing an exotic cologne, because he smelled like a forest would; fresh and green, growing things. She paused a moment to breathe in his scent.

“They work for the House. They kick out anyone who isn’t buying or otherwise looks suspicious. It keeps the Guntai out.” He tucked a map into one of the belts at his waist.

They moved over to the stall that Derrex had indicated. She was glad to see that it was next to the stall she had been watching. She wanted to see the glass the boy had looked at. Derrex spoke softly to the box keeper at the stall they were standing in front of. He handled and shuffled through their goods while they talked.

Xania paid little attention to Derrex. She was looking at the other stall. The counter was buried in stones and glass. It looked like a dragon’s horde. The vendor, or the box keeper, as Derrex had called them, was a tiny old woman. She looked too ill to even hold herself upon the stool, but there she sat. Xania met the woman’s eyes and gasped, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth. The woman’s pupils were red and blood seeped from her eyes and down her bony cheeks.

Derrex gently laid his hand on Xania’s shoulder, “You alright?”

Xania looked at him, “Her eyes…”

Out of habit now, she leaned in to speak into his ear. How could he take it so well, the way that her eyes bled?

“What about them?” he asked.

Xania looked back and the woman’s eyes were a soft brown, a little dulled from age. There was no blood.

“I thought… I don’t know,” she whispered.

Xania felt a small trembling in her stomach. What was going on?

“Your powers are awakening, child. You have been blessed with the gift of sight. Don’t fear your eyes,” the old woman crooned at her.

The old lady reached beneath the counter. Her leathery claw like hand returned with a small leather bag.

“Seeing stones. They will focus your powers,” she said.

Passing them over to Xania without naming them a price. But Xania made no move to take the pouch.

“We’ll take them,” Derrex said.

Derrex attempted to pass the woman money but she shook her head.

“There are some things that cannot be sold,” she croaked.

Derrex paused, tucked his money away and gently took the pouch. He took Xania’s hand and laid them in it.

“They called you,” he murmured.

Xania looked down at the bag. Breath came hard and heavy.

“Go ahead, look at them,” Derrex said.

“Is it… safe?” Xania asked.

“Most seers cast stones to see, but who knows with the stones, eh?” the little woman raised her hands with a shrug.

“They can’t hurt you. They just might show you something though,” Derrex said.

He untied the bag’s strings.

“If you have no seer’s power, you will see nothing. Otherwise… well, you will.” He shrugged.

She muttered a curse, looking again at the bag. It seemed to move in her hand, as if breathing. Xania shivered. Perhaps it forgets that it’s dead. Xania looked up, no one was there. The market was empty and silent. She looked around, turning with her search. No one. How was that possible? She looked back to the stones, her heart throbbing against her ribs. She opened the bag and looked down at the stones.

Runes.

They were white and roughly oval shaped. They didn’t look like stone, it seemed softer somehow, more alive. On each was carved a symbol, painted red. She had expected the pieces of glass. These were nicer. Xania reached into the bag and drew out one of the runes. A lightning bolt.

Wholeness.

Again Xania looked up, but she was still alone. Was it the runes that had spoken to her? Perhaps they were the ones telling her that she had to come. But as soon as she thought about it, she knew that it was wrong. This voice she was hearing now was different from the other voices she had been hearing.

“Great. I need another voice to hear,” she thought.

She looked back to the rune she held tightly between her thumb and fore finger. The lightning bolt squirmed. As if trying to pull itself off. It pulsed with a red light, slowly growing in intensity, until the light was all she could see. Then she closed her eyes and felt herself slipping to… where?

Xania stood in front of herself. She watched her hair writhe about her body like bloody snakes. Her large brown eyes wept tears of blood. She mouthed silent words that she strained to hear, but couldn’t. She fell back, but was lifted from the ground. Her skin seeped blood from the pores, soaking her white clothes red. She screamed and her skin tore open, splashing blood over her observing self. From the remains of her dying body, a hand reached outward and groped about. It grabbed upon the air and pulled itself from the bloody mass. She rose up as her body dissolved away.

“Know me,” the other girl commanded, turning to look at her.

She did. Deep in her gut, she feared her. There was no name, but she knew her face. It was her face.

Aeloria.

The same as all their faces.

“Come to me, know me,” she said.

Gentle and sweet. This other self stood before her. But there was power here, sleeping inside, waiting to wake.

Project Aeloria.

There were others, pressing around her. So many of them were screaming. She saw one of the doctors with a gun that shot out a beam of light. It shot a pattern of red over her sister’s face. Then she was screaming and they shot her.

“No,” she whispered.

She didn’t want to remember. She stepped back from her. The shadows rose up and swirled around this other self, she stood before her then as a dark silhouette. 

“Come.”

“I’m coming,” she  whispered.

Then she was gone and another form rose from the swirling darkness. Large lidless eyes stared out at her, yellow and huge. They gave her peace.

“I am your servant. Seek me and I shall be your sword,” It hissed as it coiled its long body about itself.

Then it too was gone. When the darkness lifted, it revealed a broken, bloody body. She didn’t know who this girl was, bound up into this tree. But her face was not the same.

“No,” Xania whispered, dropping the stone.

It fell back into the bag, clinking against the other runes. The noise and stench of the market flooded back in. People pushed and jostled about her.

“Xania?” Derrex whispered.

Derrex touched her cheek.

“I have to find her,” she said.

Tears spilled from her wide eyes.

“What did you see?” he asked.

“Her death,” she moaned.

She wiped her tears harshly.

“We have to find her. The tree is dying. We have to…”

She choked on a sob.

“We will,” Derrex said, as he pulled her into his embrace.

He wasn’t sure what he was promising her, but he meant it. Helping her was everything. Important things were happening and they were all wrapped up and tangled around this frightened girl. Somehow he knew this fragile creature was all that ever mattered.

“The runes cannot lie,” the box keeper said.

Xania stared at her. It was the same woman, but she was young and beautiful. Xania blinked, no longer sure what was real.

Derrex held Xania’s hand and guided her through the market. She followed him blindly. Echoes of that other place kept coming back to her. The high ceiling. The people around her. All the other girls there looked just like her. And they were all just girls. How old? Maybe ten. It seemed real. Felt like a memory. They fell like cut wood. One downed after the other. Those in the white scrubs were supposed to be taking care of them, but they were killing them like cattle.

Gripping Derrex’s hand tighter and squeezing her eyes shut, she tried to sharpen the images. Running away would not gain her anything now. Knowing was what she needed. If this was her past, she had to know it. Why hadn’t she remembered before?

“I need to know!” Xania thought.

Beep. Initiating command sequence 28735. Beep. Scanning. Slowing, hand slacking its grip and her thoughts going grey, she felt as if fingers were ruffling through her mind. Little flicking of card stocks. Flick. Flick. Flick. Images flashed and passed. Sounds and smells. Memories came and went. All sense of the presence left her.

Scanning. Please, refine search. Beep.

“Refine search?” Xania thought.

Derrex’s mouth was against her ear and he had an arm around her waist. Her body had gone limp and he was holding her up. Righting herself, she pressed herself against him, finally understanding that he was asking what was wrong.

Beep.

“Well, the voices in my head are fucking with my memories and are now asking me about what to search for,” she thought.

She laughed. Beep.

“I’m going mad,” she thought.

“Xania?” he whispered.

Creases formed between his eyes. Stroking her finger tip over them she tried a weak smile.

Beep.

“I’m tired, but I’m alright,” she answered.

It was true. Fucking exhausted was probably more accurate. And she thought she was going to be alright.

“I got what we need,” he said, steering them towards the exit and then adding, “I’ll get you somewhere you can rest.”

She nodded to his back. Resting sounded like a good idea. There wasn’t time for it, but there wasn’t any avoiding it either. She wasn’t a machine and couldn’t go forever.

Please, refine search. Beep.

“Search? I can’t search right now,” she thought.

Cancel command sequence 28735. Beep.