Orsus Of A New Day

EEmeline Kualasis hated morning patrols more than she hated her younger brother’s stupid and impulsive actions that almost always got him killed.

She sighed as she trudged through the broken roads of the Westerville Alley – the slums of Rasparte City. Everyone in the city regarded this place as the remnant of the past – a place that had somehow survived the Fourth Intercontinental War twenty years ago – only to be forgotten in the future.

The air around this area was pungent and smelled like rotten eggs accompanied with dust particles which gave Emeline the strong urge to sneeze all the time. The roads were cracked and at some places even held potholes filled with dirty water some of which had become breeding ground for mosquitoes. But it seemed that the world didn’t care about whatever went on in this place.

The deeper she went into the place, the shabbier it became. At first it was just the roads and the heaps of garbage in the surrounding scenery, now even the buildings – if they were intact – had walls covered with algae and fungus and creepers growing all over them. Sooner or later even these buildings would fall and become part of the earth, forgotten.

Emeline could now see the huge walls that surrounded the city. The thousand feet walls were constructed right after the war had ended. Her sapphire blue eyes gazed at the obsidian sky that had still not caught the rays of light; the sun was yet to rise and the chilly winter breeze blowing through the congested alleyway sent shivers down her spine.

Most of the city had still not risen from their slumber, waiting for the majestic sun to rise and announce the commencement of a new day. This part of the city usually woke up before the regular folk as they were low worker class and their only survival was daily wages. However, today the City Guild had declared a red alert on the city because of the Orc breach last evening at the Guardian School. Most of the People were still inside their homes waiting for the sun to rise so that they could go and do their jobs.

“It’s done,” she stated, dissatisfied.

The Westerville Alley was quiet, too quiet, for Emeline Kualasis’ acceptance. After all, this place was never quiet no matter what was happening in the main city; even if there was a red alert, the people would already be setting up their stalls and start selling their goods. The laborers would scurry off to different parts of the city to begin their work and to earn. Even the kids would take to the streets and play their made up games, but today it was all empty and abandoned like a ghost town.

To top off the unsettling state of things in her environment, Emeline felt a weird presence following her throughout her patrol. It was as if a ghost was watching her – following her every movement at each step she too, each action she did, felt like it was being observed by someone. She felt exposed. But no matter how many times she turned (even discreetly), she could see no one behind her. Only the empty streets of Westerville Alley greeted her sights all around.

“Emeline Kualasis, please report to the Westerville Locus immediately,” the mechanical voice of the Captain resonated through her nuntius orb, cutting through the silence.

Nuntius Orb was a small spherical device that was used for communicating with one another. It worked by using Ley Lines as their path of travelling to connect one orb with the other. However, these only worked at places which still had ruins of Ancient Civilizations around. For instance, the Rasparte’s Tower of Astrea is said to be millennia old and was created by Goddess Sepira when ascended on the lands of Aviona. These sort of buildings attracted a lot of Ley Lines creating a pathway for the Nuntius Orbs to establish a connection.

Emeline wrapped her hand around the small white sphere. The enchantments on it hummed against her palm, smoke slithered over her freckled, peach-pale skin. She grit her teeth and withstood it, it not used to the sensation even after using the device for more than three years.

“Yes Dad,” she replied. “I just completed my patrol. Everything is quiet as you said it would be.”

“Good,” he replied through the static. “But how many times do I need to remind you that when we are on duty, I am your Captain not father.”

“Whatever. I will remember next time,” she grinned even when she knew he couldn’t see her childishness.

“Also before you report back here, I want you to solve a dispute in the Westerville Tavern,” he said, voice slightly static. “Some merchant from the Capital and a lizardman are brawling there.”

“Again?” she asked frustrated, a growl escaping her throat and her sapphire blue eyes filled with annoyance. “That’s the seventh time this week!”

“Yes. Go there now,” he paused before continuing. “The Count Alder wants to meet you today. He will be waiting at the Guild around mid-morning. And um, you know… Can you talk-”

“Talk to Aiden? Yeah, I was going to do it anyways. And ugh, I need to meet that Old man again…”

Without any further delay, Emeline unsheathed her sword and started walking towards the Tavern.

‘This is the worst!’ she thought.

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Aiden had never slept so peacefully like he did after fighting the Enigma. It was a wonder that one could actually sleep this good after fighting a man-eating monster with an added bonus of no recurring nightmares haunting their sleep.

“Meet me at the Guild.”

Beatrix’s words echoed in the back of his head as his eyes slowly fluttered open, welcoming the warm glare of the sun.

It was morning, or maybe dawn? He didn’t quite know. After all the only thing he remembered last was Miss Kudelia’s concerned face above him and the feeling of relief and accomplishment washing over him like a tidal wave. He had successfully protected his teacher.

His upper left arm still had the pain from the sigil that had burned itself into his skin last evening like a brand when he became a Jaeger.

Jaeger. Enigma. These terms were still new to him.

If that tattoo hadn’t been there he would have taken yesterday’s events to be just a dream. Some kind of weird, extremely descriptive dream. But it wasn’t. The girl, Beatrix was real and was the Enigma. So was the fact she wanted to meet him today.

But even if she was real, what about the Enigma? What kind of creatures were they? In his nine years of schooling, he had never once been taught about anything like an Enigma. He knew about trolls, orcs, faeries, spirits, nymphs and many other supernatural creature but never an Enigma. And the Jaeger, a line of warriors who fought by breaking all natural laws of Astarte Manipulation.

He wanted to know. He wanted to understand what had exactly happened yesterday.

Aiden sighed as his thoughts took a different direction.

What did his parents think about yesterday’s attack? They wouldn’t believe him if he told them about the Enigma and the Jaeger. They would tell it off as shock and trauma. Nobody would believe him. Thus, they couldn’t help him. But at the same time, who would want to know about horrifying creatures such as the one he faced yesterday?

The only person who could answer all his questions was Beatrix.

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It was early morning and Milia Kualasis was making her way up the staircase, holding a breakfast tray in her hands which held a bowl of porridge and a glass of milk for her son, Aiden. She was wearing a freshly laundered white dress with a brown apron tied at her waist.

Yesterday when her husband had told her that her son was at the hospital, she was terrified. No one would tell her what had happened or how critical his condition was. Her prying had been shut off with the same comments of an Orc attack. She begged her husband to tell her so that she could at least know what had happened to put her at ease. He told her that an Orc had broken through the city barriers and entered the main city. Aiden had slain it but during the process he ended up getting injured. Luckily his injuries had healed within a few hours of treatment from the healers and he was good to go.

She wasn’t given any details about what had actually unfolded last night but she had a hunch which she hoped against hope wasn’t true.

She stopped in front of an open door. Aiden’s room.

Aiden Kualasis was sitting up on his bed, reading a history textbook that he should have been studying at school.

He was in his night clothes, a robe which had fallen open at the neck. His mother could see the bandages crisscrossed across his chest. He was a handsome boy, she knew. It wasn’t the first time she was looking at her son. But she couldn’t help praising him and be proud of him. He had raven hair and serious black eyes just like his father.

However, one thing that bothered her was the seriousness in his eyes. Those eyes belonged more on a middle-aged man with grown kids rather than a sixteen year old. His eyes seemed as if they had seen too much. A pain that no one was aware of except of him.

Milia softly knocked the wooden door signaling her presence.

“Good morning, dear,” she said, offering him a kind smile. “You’re up early.”

“Mom?” he asked in reply, confusion lacing his voice. “Why did you bring the breakfast over here? You could have just called me downstairs.”

She only smiled warmly in return as she crouched and placed the wooden tray on his nightstand. She ruffled his hair as she straightened her posture, fixing her fond gaze at her son.

“It’s alright,” she said. “Sometimes even you deserve to take rest.”

She turned around to take her leave. She wanted to ask him about what had happened yesterday but something within her told her that he wouldn’t tell her. Rather he couldn’t.

“Mom?” Aiden called out to her nervously. “Um, you know about yesterday… What happened-”

“It’s alright,” she replied and turned to sit next to Aiden as she caressed his head in her hands lovingly. A tear formed in the corner of her eye but she couldn’t cry now. “If you can’t tell me about it right now, then I’ll wait. So don’t worry about it… But remember this if you need to talk about anything, then I am always here.”

Before she could start crying, she placed a quick kiss on his forehead and walked out of the room – leaving a guilt-stricken Aiden behind.

He had wanted to tell her everything. He had wanted to confess everything that had happened to him as soon as he saw her, but he couldn’t. It ate at him from the inside out whenever he saw that hurt expression on his mother’s face.

‘Why?’ he thought guiltily. ‘Why does it always have to be this way? Even back then it was the same.’

A heartbeat later, a female voice could be heard throughout the house, half-muffled through the wood.

“I am home, Mom!” the voice barked.

“Breakfast is on the table and-” Milia replied only to stop dead in her tracks when she saw her daughter. “Why are you covered in dirt? You look as if you were scavenging through garbage! Your father never told me that you switched jobs and became a cleaner instead.”

“Oh, come on, Mom! Really? And even if I did switch jobs – why would I ever become a cleaner?”

Emeline walked further into the house as she fidgeted, hopping from foot to foot. Sweat gleamed on her brow, when she wiped it with her filthy hand only more dirt smeared her face.

“Loud as ever, sis,” Aiden murmured to himself with a smile. He felt at home as he continued to hear the routine morning banter of the mother-daughter duo. He had been listening to them ever since he was reborn. In the beginning it was too much for him to bear. The constant noises of disagreement ending with either of them getting pissed off and ignoring everyone only to apologize later and then act as if nothing had happened. But gradually it became something Aiden always looked forward to listen.

A few minutes later, the noises stopped. They were still talking as he could hear soft whispers of their voices, but it was too low for him to make out what they were actually saying.

‘I guess they finally came to an understanding,’ he thought. ‘And here I was hoping they would continue for a while to keep me entertained.’

Aiden carefully reached for the glass of milk at his nightstand and started gulping its contents down.

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“Don’t worry, I’ll handle him.”

“Do whatever you want to,” Milia replied. “But take a bath first.”

“I will once I have talked with him,” Emeline replied, she was already halfway up to Aiden’s room. Her eyes shone with the Elder sister authority as she stepped in front of the open door, her arms crossed.

“Aiden Kualasis, we need to talk.”

‘When I asked for entertainment, this wasn’t what I was expecting!’ Aiden mentally screamed as he stared at his elder sister standing at the doorway with fire burning in her eyes.

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So guys The second Arc officially begins!!! What's gonna happen next? What are Jæger? What are Enigma? All these questions will be answered soon.

So keep on reading everyone.

Like Always Happy Reading Everyone!!!