Chapter 13: Longing

Nova, David, and Carthy enter the lively town of Schir-Etsas where they meet a distraught woman who seems to be looking for someone important.

After following a path in the dirt for half a day, the three misfits were standing at the border of Schir-Etsas, the large town closest to Sanjo, in the early afternoon. Nova held her seagull bobble-head in both hands, impressed by the size of the town when compared to the others she’s visited. As David adjusted his coat, Carthy walked towards the center of town.

“Just remember that we’re only here to restock supplies,” the woman called back to her friends. “No distractions this time, okay? We go in then we get out…we don’t need to get behind schedule.”

“Do you think they have a bakery here?” Nova stared into space, her mouth watering. “Maybe they’ll have those crescent things, or cinnamon buns, or some cream-filled stuff, or maybe some " “

“There’s one way to find out, sunshine,” Carthy shouted, motioning them over. “You’re going have to come into town.”

              Nova scurried over to Carthy with David jogging behind her. As he caught up with his friends, David took in the scope of the town. Unlike Amxie and Sanjo, Schir-Etsas boasted a lively atmosphere. Considered an entertainment capital by both the Outer and Inner Brim villages, its buildings were much taller than the others. They also had easier access to electricity, giving them the opportunity to have luxuries such as aged neon signs and a few billboards that rotated advertisements in fifteen second intervals. Its downtown core was also larger, with multiple shops and walkways where street performers would demonstrate their talents for the passing crowds. The bakery would prove to be harder to find, as Nova couldn’t distinguish its scent from the perfume of pedestrians or the greasy food from the vendors along the peninsula.

              Carthy was leading the group into the downtown core, where Nova’s eyes constantly switched focus from one thing to another. David had his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to keep the over-stimulated girl grounded. As they passed the several buskers and vendors, Carthy noticed a woman taping a poster with a photo of a young girl to the window of a small business. As the woman turned around, Carthy attempted to avoid eye contact but they briefly exchanged glances and the woman approached the group, gripping another copy of the poster tightly.

“I’m really sorry to bother you,” the woman panted in a shaky voice. “It’s just that you seem new in town and I wanted to ask you something really important.”

“We’re new, yeah,” Carthy pointed behind her. “It wasn’t too long since we came into the border from the forest. Why do - “

“From the forest?” The woman held a poster close to Carthy’s face, pointing to the young girl in the center of it. “Please tell me, did you see this girl anywhere while coming here?”

              David took the poster to examine it, his friends reading it over his shoulders. The girl wasn’t smiling and her light brown hair covered her right eye completely. The black nose ring stuck out against her pale skin, as did her purple sweater.

“So she went missing…” Nova carefully read the headline of the poster, leaning in to get a better look.

“How long ago was this?” David looked up at the woman, noticing the worried expression on her face.

“It’s only been a day but I had to get the posters done last night and that was after combing through the entire town for her and then - “

“Sounds like you’ve been looking for her non-stop,” Nova interrupted, petting her bobble-head.

              Carthy took the poster from David’s hand and recalled the scream she heard from the night before. The timing seemed to line up perfectly and if the scream did come from the missing girl, Carthy assumed that she must still be alive. The bandaged woman shook her head and held the poster out to the stranger.

“I hope you find her soon,” Carthy said. “We unfortunately haven’t seen any trace of her. I’m sorry, I really am, but we’re on a tight schedule and we need to get going.”

“Can you at least help me look for her, even for half a position? She’s got to be around here somewhere and if we split up, maybe we’ll find her soon. I’ll give you anything you want, please just help me find her…”

“I wish we could help, but we need to be on our way.”

“I’m begging you,” the woman crunched the posters in her hand, her voice trembling. “I haven’t slept a wink since she’s gone missing. I’ve been running around without any breaks looking for her. Can you please find it in your heart to help? I know you’re busy but anything at all that you can do will be more of a help than you could ever know.”

“How about we talk in there?” David pointed past the woman to the convenience store along the stretch of various businesses. “That way, we can get the supplies we need and you can tell us the full story at the same time. Would that work?”

“Yeah,” the woman nodded, holding her free hand to David. “Yeah, it would. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I guess I forgot to introduce myself. How rude of me, I’m sorry. The name’s Helena Nomiteo, how about you?”

“David Clarx,” the young Mercenary replied, his hand being violently shaken by Helena. “These are my friends Nova and Carthy Von…Von…”

“Ethoros,” Carthy commented. “It’s Von Ethoros. Come on, let’s just get this over with.”

              Carthy walked past Helena towards the store with the others trailing close behind her. Nova made her way to Carthy’s side, looking up at the woman as she made her way towards the shop.

“Is something wrong?” Nova put the bobble-head into her cloak pocket.

“We shouldn’t be getting involved,” Carthy said quietly. “As much as we may want to help her, we need to get to Taplica and we can’t do that if we’re constantly distracted by other people’s problems.”

“We didn’t get distracted in Sanjo. We took a day off because we were ahead of schedule.”

“That’s just as bad. Because of that, we left Sanjo with some repairs needing to be done and bodies needing to be buried. Everywhere we’ve taken a rest, they’ve found us, more specifically, found me. We put those around us in danger just as much as we do ourselves when the Taplican Regime comes looking for us.”

“I see…yeah. We haven’t been the most careful, have we? We’ve been breaking the Mercenary Code left and right…this isn’t good!” Nova grabbed Carthy’s sleeve, tugging at the fabric. “Do you know what this means? If word gets out about any of this, the Head Master will come looking for us…and that’s really bad! Like, re-e-e-e-eally bad!”

“Calm down, okay?” Carthy patted the top of Nova’s head. “Nothing bad will happen, the Head Master or whoever won’t be coming for you. Let’s keep our cool and focus on what we have going on right now.”

              Nova nodded, feeling slightly comforted, and entered the store with Carthy. The two waited for David and Helena to come in and the four of them began walking up and down the aisles, looking for the necessary food and supplies that they’d need for the rest of their trip.

“Start from the beginning,” David said, examining the package of peach candies. “Why did she go missing?”

“Well, she came home, I asked her about her day and she just started snapping at me,” Helena replied, fixing her short blonde hair. “We then broke out into an argument and then she just stormed off. Nothing I did or said stopped her from leaving. And while making the posters, I saw that she failed a couple of tests. They were crumpled up in her backpack. Maybe that’s what set her off…”

“What were you arguing about?” Nova took a bag of chips and shook it, disappointed that most of the bag was filled with air. “Sorry if that’s a bit personal, I’m just wondering.”

“She was upset that I never spend time with her anymore. Which is completely wrong, might I add. I mean, I don’t spend as much time with her as I used to, but it isn’t my choice. How can I help her with her homework when I’m trying to get the rest of my life started? I want to spend time with her and all that, but I need to focus on my work. Otherwise, I’ll never move out of my parent’s house.”

“On the poster, you forgot to add a name,” Carthy mentioned as she grabbed a few bottles of water. “We might need one of those if we come across her. Might make the search a bit easier, don’t you think?”

“I did?” Helena took one of the wrinkled posters and scanned over it. “Oh man, you’re right! How could I be that stupid? I guess I was in such a rush that I forgot the basics…sorry about that. Her name’s April Nomiteo, so that makes her my sister.”

              Carthy’s grip on the water bottle tightened, her throat closing. She froze in place and slowly put the bottle into the basket, her hand shaking.

“Good to know,” she said, her voice becoming squeaky. She cleared her throat and walked into the other aisle of junk food. David watched her before returning his focus to Helena.

“Have you gone to anyone else about this? Aren’t there any Mercenaries stationed in this area?”

“I already have…lazy b******s won’t lift a finger without a good pay in return.”

“What?” Nova poked her head out from over the display three aisles away. She made her way to Helena with an armful of packaged sweets. “Mercenaries can’t do that! We get only get paid after the job is completed, not before. Where’s their headquarters?”

“Just on the outside of the downtown core. They won’t listen to anyone who doesn’t have deep pockets, so…”

              Nova’s face twisted in anger, throwing her sweets into Carthy’s basket, who walked into the same aisle as the rest of the group. She paced back and forth, unsure of what to do with herself.

“That’s just…that’s some serious…this is…this is flanking gull-script!”

              David and Helena stared with shocked expressions as Nova put her arms to her side in frustration to the sound of Carthy laughing, the woman leaning against the shelf to support herself. The other customers stared in their direction, wondering why there was a woman giggling in the middle of the store. Carthy’s laughter began to calm down and she patted Nova on her shoulder, chuckling to herself.

“Okay, okay,” Carthy said, snorting. “It’s the thought that counts. I’m gonna pay for this stuff so I’ll meet you at the 

headquarters. Helena can show me the way.”

“Got it,” Nova replied with determination, grabbing David’s wrist and dragging him out the door. Carthy walked to the cashier and Helena stood beside her, observing the transaction.

“Listen,” Carthy spoke quietly. “I’m sorry for acting out earlier. Things have been really stressful lately with our current situation and I wasn’t wanting to add to it. I was being selfish and I didn’t know that the girl was your sister. Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Helena cheerfully replied, slapping Carthy on the back. “It’s no big deal, I totally understand. I just appreciate you guys going to the Mercenary HQ and setting them straight. That in itself will be a big help.”

              Carthy grabbed her bag of groceries and walked towards the door, holding it open for Helena and the elderly couple behind her.

“So you’re not pissed or anything?”

“I’ll admit that I was when you initially didn’t help. But since you, Nova, and David are doing this for me, it’s pretty hard to stay mad.”

“I’m glad. I can only imagine what having your sister go missing would be like.”

“It’s tough. I’m really scared that she’s gone forever but I can’t give up until I know for sure. She’s a strong girl so I know she’s fine.”

              The two women stood silently next to the entrance of the store, a bell going off every time the door opened. They watched people go up and down the main street, listening to the distant strumming of a guitar. Carthy cleared her throat and turned her attention to Helena.

“Since we’re both being honest here…I heard something in the woods on our way here. It was like a girl screaming and we didn’t find a body or anything. If April went into the woods, she couldn’t have gotten far and there’s a good chance of us catching up to her.”

Helena was taken back by Carthy suddenly embracing her, the cool bottles of water chilling her back from inside of the bag.

“We’ll find her, I promise,” Carthy’s voice was slightly muted by Helena’s sweater, her face pressed against her shoulder. “I don’t want you to have to lose your sibling too.”

              Helena grinned and returned Carthy’s hug, wrapping her arms around the bandaged woman. She couldn’t think of anything to say, yet understood that no words were needed. They released themselves shortly after, laughing timidly as they made their way to the Mercenaries’ headquarters that Nova and David had just begun to enter.

              The lobby was non-existent, as the wall separating the main office to the waiting area was torn down to make the office larger. Covering the floor were flyers with various Artificial descriptions and photos, some of which had a green checkmark drawn over the face. A desk was positioned in the center of the room with a few old wooden chairs around it. Behind the desk was a man in metal armour, his feet up on the furniture as he leaned back in his chair to smoke a cigar. A skinnier man with similar attire leafed through various flyers and sorted them into two piles, putting the ones with larger rewards on the right side of the coffee table in the back. The third man, who was of average size, placed a mug on the desk for the smoking man, using a poster with April’s face as a coaster. Nova cleared her throat, placing her hands on her cocked hips. The smoking man took a large drag from his cigar and began laughing as he saw his visitors.

“Well, well, look who it is, boys,” the man said as he placed his cigar in the ashtray beside him. “It’s the pipsqueak who thinks she’s a Mercenary and her mascot. They sure grow up quick, don’t they?”

“It’s nice to see you too, Mackerel,” David rolled his eyes, straightening his coat.

Nova walked up to the desk and slammed her hands on its surface, locking eyes with the large man. She leaned in, wincing at the smell of nicotine and cheap cologne. Mackerel remained in the same position in his chair, unthreatened by the girl’s advance.

“I’d love to hear about how you’ve been since we last met, but we’re here on a business trip,” Nova sternly stated. “From what I’ve heard, you’ve been asking for commission before you even start your mission, not to mention turning down the ones that don’t have big rewards. Mind explaining what’s up with that?”

“It’s a new business practice,” Mackerel calmly replied, using his hand to direct his visitors to the chairs in front of the desk. “It’s a bit of a long story so you’re more than welcome to take a seat while we talk this over.”

              Nova quietly sat down, not wanting to be rude by refusing the offer. She looked to David and nodded her head, signaling for him to do the same. The man of average size walked behind the skinnier Mercenary towards a closet of various gear. David watched him closely before his attention was brought back to Mackerel, who was snapping his fingers impatiently.

“You see, being appointed by the Head Master to patrol such a large plot of land is a very tough task,” Mackerel spoke, leaning back in his chair. “We have been forced to change our business model to accommodate it. As such, we only take on the most pressing and important missions that come our way. We have no time to be looking for some kid that wandered away from home with the promise of some pocket change as a reward.”

“That goes against what Mercenaries stand for,” Nova interrupted, sitting up in her chair. “Mercenaries are supposed to protect the human condition. I guess you’ve already forgotten about the Code then, if this is how you run things in your division.”

“Code? What Code? There’s never been a code for Mercenaries. I don’t know what they’ve been teaching you whatever backwater wasteland you two live in, but we’ve never had any kind of honour system. You would understand that if you were an actual licensed Mercenary, sweet cheeks.”

              Nova growled and looked down, her fists on top of her knees. Mackerel then turned his look onto David, leaning in from his chair to speak to the boy. David’s eyes shifted from the man behind the desk to the man in the closet, who had found what he’d been looking for and closed the doors. A large bundle of rope was placed over his shoulder.

“I feel bad for you, having your role model lie to you like that for so many years,” Mackerel said softly, the cigar’s prominent scent still carried on his breath. “You know, it’s those kinds of people that we need to watch out for. Not the runaways, not the petty thieves. None of those are as bad as the people who use deceit and manipulation to get their way. Those are the most dangerous kinds of criminals.”

“You’re one to talk,” David locked eyes with the man across from him, glaring into his irises. “And nobody talks about my friends like that.”

“Those are some pretty bold words for a wanted man,” Mackerel hissed.

The large Mercenary leaned back into his chair and snapped his fingers again then pointing to his guests. The other two Mercenaries used the rope from the closet to tie Nova and David to their seats, despite their efforts to get away. The rope was tied around their bodies from their shoulders to their waist, the loose ends being used to bind their hands behind their backs. A separate section of rope was used to fasten their feet together. Mackerel began laughing as he got up from his seat, spinning a polished musket around his index finger, and walked around the desk to the other side. His accomplices moved the chairs to follow him until Mackerel was blocking the view of the door, spinning his weapon in front of them.

“You could not have come by at a better time,” Mackerel stated. “We were actually about to start a mission today but it looks like we didn’t have to go far to complete it. Orvin, get me that poster, will ya?”

              The skinnier man went through a stack of posters from his desk and handed one to Mackerel, who grinned upon looking at it.

“We received this from the Head Master himself. Actually, every Mercenary was sent the same mission. All the real ones did, anyways. I’m not too sure if you can read, considering the other block-headed decisions you must’ve made as time went on, but how about you share this with the class, sweet cheeks?”

              Mackerel turned the poster around and hung it directly in front of Nova. She and David were shocked to see individual sketches of themselves and Carthy under a headline that read ‘WANTED’ in large bold letters. Underneath the drawings was a paragraph that Mackerel was pointing to. Nova resisted the urge to spit in the man’s eye and took a deep breath.

“To all stationed Mercenaries, we have received intel stating that the terrorists within the borders of Taplica City are receiving outside help from different factions of Magraan,” Nova recited. “Be on the look out for a fake Mercenary who goes by the alias ‘Nova’, her partner David Clarx and the rogue Carthy Von Ethoros, as they are under suspicion of working alongside these vigilantes. A reward of seventy-five thousand Dertics will go for each of the renegade Mercenaries and a one-hundred-and-fifty thousand Dertics reward will be given to whomever can bring Ms. Von Ethoros back to Taplica alive. Capture Ms. Von Ethoros immediately and kill her cohorts on sight. Best of luck.”

              David’s eyes widened as he rocked back and forth furiously in his chair, attempting to free himself from the restraints. Nova slowly realized what she had just read and began screaming, doing her best to kick off the rope around her ankles. The average-sized Mercenary put a section of rope into Nova’s open mouth, gagging her so she couldn’t make as loud of noises. Mackerel checked the ammunition count in his gun and chuckled at the full cylinders. He closed the compartment of his weapon, stepped closer to the struggling Nova and placed the barrel of his gun against the center of her forehead. Orvin held David’s chair in place, stopping the flailing boy from interfering.

“I’m not getting paid nearly enough to do this but I guess it’ll have to do,” Mackerel whispered as Nova bit down as hard as she could on the rope in her mouth. He pressed the barrel harder against her forehead, incoherent grunts coming from the panicked girl. “Thanks from bringing me the easiest hundred and fifty thousand Dertics I’ve ever made, sweet cheeks.”

07 Gausut, Cycle 1976: 22 years before the Taplican Raid

              The sun’s beams poured into the bistro from the front window as the servers inside hustled about to keep up with the demand. It was the peak of the vacation period and the Dareve Bistro was hit by their third rush that day. In the corner booth, Jayven watched the waitresses pass by, sipping his milkshake as his eyes followed the motion of the women’s hips. Pheo nudged the boy’s shoulders, Daniel smirking as he opened his can of soda.

“You’ve always had your eyes on the prize,” Pheo teased, stirring his milkshake with the bright red straw. “Though maybe you should be focusing on your future studies rather than the female form. This is your senior year, you know.”

“I know,” Jayven grumbled, resting his head on his hand. “It’ll be great to get everything done with so I can go to CTU but there’s no way I can afford going there unless I get a job. That’s more challenging than any equation in school.”

“You still have that arm from the Science Fair a couple of years ago, don’t you?” Daniel drank from his can and set it back onto the table, tapping his nails against its surface. “You told me about that guy who said you could make millions off of that idea. Couldn’t you sell that to him or some other major company and be rolling in cash in no time?”

“I never got a business card from him,” Jayven replied, agitated. “Besides, what company would take the idea of a poor nobody and turn it into a product?”

“You never know in this city,” Pheo chimed in, using his finger to pick up the last of the whipped cream inside his empty glass. “Stranger things have happened. Just look at this group, two youngsters and an old coot, sharing a booth at the bistro.”

“That has nothing to do with this, Pheo. I need some kind of degree before I can be taken seriously in this place. That arm prototype is the beginning of an era of rehabilitation, not capitalism. Even if I were to sell it to some big company, it just wouldn’t feel right…”

“Funny that it’s your heart that causes you the most trouble. You couldn’t take one Dertic from anyone if it meant stepping on the little guy.”

“That’s why he’s gonna take Taplica by storm one day,” Daniel replied, raising his can of soda towards his friend. 

“Someday, we’ll be working for him and we’ll be making the world great! I can see it now!”

“I think you’ve had one too many sodas today, Dan,” Jayven smirked, motioning his friend to calm down. “That is the dream, though. I do want to make this city one where opportunities are equal for everyone. It just sucks that we’re stuck in reality where I need a job for money, money for school, and school for a job, even though I barely have two of those things.”

“I’m sure you’ll find a job soon,” Pheo pushed his glass to the center of the table and wiped his hand. “I don’t think you’ll be unemployed for too long, actually.”

“What makes you say that?”

              Pheo pointed towards the front entrance where a male worker put a ‘Help Wanted’ sign on the window. Jayven, in disbelief, turned to his older friend, who raised an eyebrow. He then looked at Daniel, who shrugged his shoulders.

“You have no competition from us,” Daniel joked. “Don’t think they’ll be hiring a ninth grader or a war vet any time soon.”

              Jayven nodded and got up from his seat. He walked towards the male worker who passed him without a second glance. Despite being dressed in a blank shirt with a ripped collar and jeans that were too short, the young boy followed the professionally dressed worker. In his haste, Jayven turned around quickly, unaware of the waitress behind him. They bumped into each other, causing the tray the waitress was carrying to tip, dropping its contents onto the hardwood floor.

              Vanilla milkshake sprayed across the patrons’ feet as the tall glass shattered into several pieces. The basket that held a grilled cheese sandwich fell into the white liquid, splashing the drink onto those close by. The tray then tumbled, landing on its rim as it spun briefly before settling down with its bottom up. The waitress shrieked at the mess, the restaurant falling silent as the gazes of its customers and employees quickly locked onto the scene happening before them.

“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry!” The waitress was quick to apologize, frantically looking around for something to clean the mess with. “I should’ve been watching where I was going. My boss is going to kill me!”

“Hey, it’s fine,” Jayven spoke, grabbing napkins from his table and began wiping the mess on the floor beneath him. “It was me who ran into you, not the other way around.”

“No, it’s not,” the waitress said, kneeling down to help the boy clean up. “I dropped everything so it’s my fault. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to do that again this week!”

“It’s not your fault. I didn’t look where I was going either. I…” Jayven saw the distraught expression of the worker, her face going red. An angry man dressed in formal attire came out from the back, his arms firmly at his side.

“Felicia Gardner,” the man called out. The worker closed her eyes and stood up, whirling around to face him. “Get in my office. Now!”

“Yes sir,” the girl said through tears, following the man to his office. Moments after a door was slammed shut, the low murmur of the bistro slowly returned. Jayven did not move from the floor and continued to wipe his mess clean.

“Jay,” Daniel said quietly. “I know you want to help and all, but maybe we ought to let the workers handle this. You saw how pissed that guy was.”

“I did,” Jayven replied, using the basket that held the fallen sandwich to dispose of the damp napkins. “That won’t stop me from cleaning up the mess I made. If I wasn’t in such a rush, she wouldn’t be getting yelled at right now. It’s the least I can do.”

“Yeah, but - “

“Daniel,” Pheo put his hand on the youngster’s shoulder. “Nothing we say is going to stop him.”

“Then don’t think I’m gonna let him have all the credit,” Daniel told Pheo as he grabbed a handful of napkins and knelt down on the ground to assist his friend.

Jayven and Daniel stayed in their spots until the mess was cleaned up, which took forty-nine napkins, placing the garbage and broken glass into the plastic basket. They then returned to their booth with Pheo and waited for the waitress to return, hoping to counsel her when she left her boss’ office. They didn’t mind the thirty-minute wait, although they were slightly peeved by having to purchase another item so they wouldn’t be kicked out for loitering. Jayven perked up when Daniel nudged him, letting him know that the waitress was coming back. As she turned the corner, Felicia was shocked to see that the spill had been cleaned up. She sniffled and wiped her eyes as she walked over to Jayven.

“Did you really clean all of that up? For me?” Her voice was quiet and she leaned close to Jayven.

“Of course,” Jayven replied. “I was responsible for the mess too so it was the least we could do.”

“That means a lot,” Felicia laughed slightly, wiping her eyes again. “Thank you so much. I’m Felicia, what’s your name?”

“Jayven,” the boy reached out and shook the woman’s hand. “These are my friends Daniel and Pheo. If you’d like, you can sit with us for a while until you feel better.”

“Thanks for the offer. I really would like to, but I should be getting back to work or I’ll be fired this time. How about two days from now, when I have my day off, we meet in Tafe Square at the 12:00 position?”

“Sounds like a deal to me,” Jayven grinned from ear to ear. “I’ll meet you there.”

“Great,” Felicia returned her new friend’s smile and waved bashfully as she walked to the other end of the bistro to take people’s orders. Pheo winked at Jayven and laughed with Daniel.

“Eyes on the prize,” Pheo stated as Jayven’s face turned a bright shade of red, smothering himself in the sleeves of his shirt.

Author's Note

As always, character interaction is the focal point of this story. Please let me know what you think of it, as without good dialogue, this story will go nowhere. Also, about time I got off my ass and wrote this chapter ^^'