For Great Justice

By the end of the day, Ariana and company had arrived in the town of Lumie. 

The town was oddly shaped; there were many unpaved roads and no right angles. It was difficult to tell, but it seemed like the town’s shape was oblong. It could take ten minutes to walk the distance in one direction, but in the other direction, it could take thirty. 

At the center of town was a large stone church and steeple. At the top of the steeple was a triangle formed of three rods. From this angle, the bottom right corner of the triangle had a ball tucked into it. On the back and side walls of the church were fountains featuring grotesque beast statues with swords down through their heads and maidens with wings for arms. 

Some children were playing at the fountain closest to them. Their laughter warmed Ariana’s heart and reminded her of when Alex would jump in puddles on rainy days. There was one time she recalled when Alex had gone to jump in a puddle, but it turned out to be quite a bit deeper than he thought it would be. He splashed in up to his waist and got completely soaked. The muddy water got all in his rain boots and soaked his socks. He cried all the way home, but a warm bath and a cup of cocoa made things right as rain. 

She felt all bubbly and pleasant remembering fondly. 

An armored man approached them with clearly aggressive intent. “STOP!” 

The children looked up at him. He scowled angrily at them. “Soiling the fountain, shame on you all!” He took a club from his side and raised it over his head, poised to strike. 

Ariana moved without another thought. Her hand thrust forward and a vine whipped up to pull taught on the man’s arm. “Huh!?”

She ran to the children and stood between them and the man. She put a hand out to block them. 

The man growled. “How dare you obstruct Justice, demon!?”

Ariana frowned. “So beating children is justice?” 

The man, with his free hand, struck her across the face. “Don’t you talk back to the law, demon! You’d be lucky to spend your life rotting in a cell when I’m done with you!”

Koichi growled angrily and stepped up, ready to draw his sword. Ariana raised her hand. 

The guard looked after struggling free. “Huh? Wait… that sword… you’re the hero that the church summoned, aren’t you? What are you doing defending this demon!? You should be killing it!”

Ariana looked to Koichi. Koichi looked between them… then to the guard. “I… I’m only concerned with the demon lord!”

The man stepped up to Koichi, Ariana shifted her position to maintain her place between the man and the children. “Your only concern is cleansing the demon menace, that means any demon that stands in the way of what is just and right!” He pointed to the children. “Those heathens have seen fit to spoil the water we all drink, they deserve to be punished, and this demon stands in the way of that!”

Koichi looked at the ground. He seemed unsure of how to respond. 

The man turned around and brandished his club at Ariana and the children “It seems the hero needs to be shown the extent of his DUTIES!” 

She huddled down to cover the children. 

And waited.

But no strike came.

She looked back and saw that another armored man stood behind the first, a firm grip on the first’s arm. 

“Hey, friend, how’s it going?” drawled the second man. His voice was calm and focused. “Kids are gonna play, and the water’s real nice when it’s hot, don’t you think?”

The first man seemed completely caught off guard. 

“Though, if you really wanna see some Justice done, I could go get the captain, see what she thinks about all this.” The second man looks past the first. “Say… don’t that one there look kinda like the captain’s boy? Hey, boy, go get your ma! Take your friends with ya!” The children do as they’re told and run off. Ariana breathed a sigh of relief as she released them.

The first man wrestled his arm free. “What do you think you’re doing, Lieutenant?” The second man maintained a casual stance. “Just keeping the peace, partner. That’s our job, remember?” 

The first man became flustered. “The captain will hear about this!” 

The second man nodded and released him. “Yes, she will.” 

The first man stormed off, clutching his wrist.

The second man approached Ariana. “Apologies for my brother-in-arm’s behavior. He’s been a stick in the mud as long as I’ve known him.” He raised a hand that steadily radiated a soothing light. “Need a heal?”

Ariana glanced him over. “It stings a bit… thank you.” He placed his hand on her cheek. He stood a head taller than her. He had a somewhat disheveled mop of shoulder-length brown hair, somewhat of a tan, and a distinct fish bone scar running down the left side of his lip and chin. He had broad shoulders and a bit of stubble. There was a tenderness and tiredness to his eyes. 

“You alright, miss?” He inquired.

Ariana snapped back to attention. “Oh, yes, thank you.” 

His hand lifted from her cheek. “No thanks necessary, miss, just doing my job.” He moved to walk away. “Keep your nose clean, you hear?” He left.

Ariana felt her cheek. The pain was gone.

Koichi approached her. “I’m sorry, Ariana, I… I didn’t know what to do.” She looked to him, thought for a second, and smiled. “It’s alright. You made the right decision in the end.”

Koichi seemed confused. 

Ariana gazed in the direction the healer went. She realized she didn’t get his name. 

The group settled down at a nearby inn. 

Koichi got his own room, and Ariana shared a room with Ellie. Ellie was hesitant to do so, but Ariana said it was fine because they were both girls. 

Ellie slept facing the wall.