Episode 12: Declaration

Arson and Troy walked into the cafeteria of the orphanage and immediately changed their minds. The decision not to eat there was an easy one because of how they felt they were being received.

Jade promised them lunch instead since she had to meet with Almarine and the rest of the orphans work on commission. This left the two without their normal breakfast and only one real option otherwise.

Arson hadn’t felt what kind of attention his new clothes brought, but assumed they would still be perceived as restored or vintage, not brand new. If they came across as vintage, however, that would prove to be a disadvantage.

People who could buy expensive clothes were viewed one way, but those who could wore clothes that were expensive because of their rarity, were seen another way entirely.

Every stare in the room solidified the choice for him. Arson would wait to eat lunch. Troy seemed to share his opinion and had already exited.

“Come on kid, don’t you have to talk with Rob?” said Troy as she walked into the kitchen. Arson walked past the whispers that he could almost pick out with his newly enhanced hearing. He rolled his eyes, but some of the things he heard were hard to completely ignore.

“They think you’re selling drugs for a gang,” said Troy.

“Yeah, that’s what I heard,” said Rob. The young man did his best with the small space he had. He also only had one aid and the girl could barely keep up with the demands Rob made on her in what felt to Arson like an endless stream of tasks.

“Need another 12 whisked, stat, Brianna!”

The girl fluttered around and managed to increase her pace even further to Arson’s surprise; almost like she wanted to show off since they had company, but Arson couldn’t be sure.

Rob continued to cook eggs using an array of different techniques all while he kept up an entire conversation in between his continual commands to Brianna.

“I didn’t believe it, but man, the watch alone is a dead giveaway. Troy, what are you his bodyguard for-hire? You clean up nicely too.” They shared a look and nodded.

“Rob, I’m not in a gang, and to protect myself from potential competition, I can’t tell you what I’m doing until you either join or point me in the direction of a better cook than you who wants to make a lot of money.” As a testament to his skills and prowess, he continued to flip omelets, but managed to look Arson directly in the eyes.

“What are you getting into, kid?” asked Rob.

“Hopefully something that will make everyone stop calling me ‘kid’ all the time,” said Arson. Rob chuckled. But Troy’s blank expression and Arson’s show of feigned confusion stopped him.

“There are many delivery services in the city, and their only problem is one of two things. First, the drone-operated services run into bugs which is natural, people bump into each other in crowds, so crowded air space is no different,” said Arson as he picked up an apple and slowly summoned conductive waters into his hand.

“This technology will have fewer errors, but it’s expensive and only offered in certain areas. Second are the man-powered services, which are currently lacking man power, which raises the price, and with the areas they are offered, they are very dangerous positions to hold,” continued Arson. The apple dissolved in his hand, and Arson was surprised to feel an intake of mana.

“Which brings me to my plan. You cook, train cooks, that is what I need from you. I’ll pay you 100k a week, and any of your hires 10k a week, up to 10—and have you seen Khalif around? I need to talk to him.” The orb formed in Arson’s hand and he closed his fist around it until it exploded. The blast was just barely contained by his small hand. Rob for the first time dropped a pan at the sound of the explosion, and Arson smiled. Rob merely looked at him then Troy before he asked,

“Are you sure this isn’t a gang?”

Troy smirked when she saw the alarmed faces of the children who gazed into the kitchen from the room over. Then shrugged.

“Nope.”

Arson left for his appointment. He was nervous because he hadn’t gotten to talk to Jade since his assumption that morning. He could be wrong. But what if he wasn’t?

He didn’t know the appropriate time to ask, and he didn’t believe the meeting would be the best place to make a mockery of himself if Jade had no intention to extend an offer of discipleship to him.

“Next,” said Almarine. Arson walked into the room and smiled at Jade. The woman rose to her feet and many in the crowd murmured at her appearance there. From what he could hear, it was beyond a rarity to see the Keeper of Maelstrom’s dump make an appearance in the city for any reason, which only furthered Arson’s suspicions.

“Thank you for joining us, young man. Next we have the request of your newest employer, Jade of CloudLake, may your master rest in peace,” said Almarine as she looked from Arson then to Jade. Jade nodded at the woman and a few others on the board.

“You are here to give the first assessment for Arson the unnamed. He has worked for you for nearly half a season now, how is his—” started Almarine.

“No need. I’ve paid his dues. If he is willing, I would like to have you process him into my custody immediately,” said Jade to Arson’s utter shock. He was only further blown away when she continued and the crowd’s volume grew.

“He will be not only my disciple, but my heir as well.” The shock in the room became physical. Not only from Arson but most of the crowd and board as well.

“Well, he must have made a good impression then,” said Almarine. Jade looked back at Arson and nodded.

“What do you say, kid? You already call me Momma Jade, we can make it legitimate. You’ve already shown me more than enough to see you—to know you to be my own son,” said Jade with a point toward the watch she’d given him. Arson once again felt strange about his watch and lifted it toward her.

“I don’t deserve it Jade, there are many other children who would bring you far more honor,” said Arson with tears in his eyes. He didn’t know when he’d started to cry, but felt the tears after he realized Jade was also teary eyed.

“None,” Jade said, shaking her head.

“None who took a chance on my family’s home as you have, my son, not as you have honored my ancestry, nor has any other been able to prove themselves worthy as you have by controlling my father’s watch, and inspired people toward better as you do, young Arson. It has been a short time, but you are my son, and I would be honored for you to know me as your mother, young man. What do you say, you're making me look crazy in front of people, boy,” said Jade with a laugh. Arson nodded. He turned to Almarine who also cried with a large smile on her face.

“Shall he be named now, or will it wait? Is there a ceremony for this process?” asked Almarine. Apparently she was as clueless to the process as Arson. Neither had seen a Keeper adopt or pick a disciple in their short and long lifetimes, as it was a truly rare event.

“There is a ceremony when he enters the world of HonorBorn competition, but it, well, sorry. I have never done this before and have a lot on my mind. These matters should go unsaid, and that is for completely different reasons, and should be done in private, although I have considered this for a long time now and I do have a name for him ready.” Jade looked at Arson and gave him a contemplative look. He was shocked to hear her ramble, and couldn’t tell if the obvious excitement Jade displayed was an act, or true happiness at his acceptance of her as his mother.

Before she spoke, he tried to ignore that her words indicated she considered a name for Arson for a long time, which was impossible, so he instead assumed she’d considered what she would name her own children or disciples long before they’d met and felt he’d burst at the seams in anticipation over his new name.

“Arson, named such as all who are born in this land without a name or title, I give you both my name and my title, with the exception that Arson will always remain a piece of what makes you, you, from henceforth you will be known as Sovereign Arson Omni,” said Jade. The room once again went silent and some were confused. Sovereign? There was only one Sovereign that Arson knew of, and Omni was the family name of the Royal family he’d been cast out from.

Arson was in a state of shock. From what had just happened, he now knew two things he’d only suspected were nothing but reality.

One, the SunStorm Sovereign from his vision had just not only adopted him and chosen him as a disciple, she was related to him through a direct blood tie.

“Does this mean that young Sovereign will be entering into the competition of Scions?” asked Almarine. Jade only nodded and Arson’s jaw dropped. Jade closed his mouth with a single finger, without a look in his direction and Arson focused on what happened next.

“I would also like to pay the rest of Troy’s contract. She and the boy seem like a packaged deal, and her freedom will help my son grow,” said Jade. Arson smiled deeply at the woman’s words and didn’t miss the reddened cheeks the woman sported momentarily.

“Of course. That will be entirely up to her, and we will have to talk to—” started Almarine, but Troy’s head poked into the large open doorway at the room’s rear entrance and shrieked with excitement.

“I’m going Miss Mary!”

A brief time later, Arson walked through the orphanage with a smile on his face so large he was sure he looked like a drunken fool. He was on the prowl for two groups, one was the bookish, or the researcher kids who followed the path of science and magic offered through most school curriculums, and the ScapeGrace, a gang started by Khalif from what Arson knew, that consisted entirely of orphan Cultivators.

He found Xani who pretty much ran the library at the orphanage. The girl flew overhead and landed a few hundred yards away from Arson who almost called out to her, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder before he could approach the girl. He was turned around by a silver-haired young man just over 7 feet. It was Khalif and he didn’t look happy.

“Hey Richie Rich. Heard you’ve been looking for me?”

The next thing Arson knew, he had a bag over his head and was tied down by what he assumed to be four or five kids.

“What the sparks Khalif? What are you doing?”

“Shut it down with the yells, kid, we’ll beat the sparks out of anyone who approaches.” Arson’s mind drifted momentarily at what the threat entailed, but then he realized, maybe he didn’t need help.

You were looking for the ScapeGrace, Arson, they just found you first.

After a few more moments of being carried around like a sack of potatoes, Arson was dropped into a seat and the bag was pulled off his head. Arson merely smiled at Khalif, who scowled back at him.

Arson tried not to roll his eyes when they were done posturing. He’d been tied firmly to a metal chair, and Arson wondered momentarily if he could melt the metal, before a snap of inspiration made him smile.

Plan B is always my favorite, but I really hope Plan A works this time.

“What?” asked Arson.

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” said Khalif. Arson shrugged, and looked around at the other cloaked and masked youths who surrounded him.

“Stop the games, kid, you’re making too many waves in the orphanage to be wasting my time. What do you want from ScapeGrace?” said Khalif with a wave at the 20 people around.

“I need you to be bodyguards for my employees,” said Arson. He didn’t expand, or speak further. He’d stated his needs and felt that should and would be enough. He had no intention of being seen as weak by any, may that be potential friend, or potential foe.

“Ha,” said Khalif with a snort of laughter. “What makes you think my gang is going to respect a kid enough to work for him. You think you can pay more than we make on the streets of Maelstrom?” said Khalif.

“I do pay well,” responded Arson, again he gave nothing further. He hadn’t been in business long and still had many steps between where he was and where he wanted to be. So took the time not to boast too carelessly. He didn’t want to make a mark out of himself, especially in front of a criminal entity like ScapeGrace.

“A gang needs more than money to follow, Arson. Loyalty, honor, and strength are respected above all else in my crew, and I can’t promise that if I make them work for some weak kid who just started to Cultivate and feels he needs a bigger pair of underwear, that it would be worth their time,” said Khalif. This caused everyone around them to laugh. The problem with the statement for Arson was that he couldn’t feel their power at all. Even Troy’s ambient mana was strong enough to leak from her body and create a powerful aura.

So either the gang was developed enough to hide their energy, auras, and presence entirely, or they were just weak. All of them.

“Well, I’m sure I could beat up everyone in here without too many issues,” said Arson as he rolled his neck to stretch as much as possible before he moved.

“Kid, you're funny. No one is going to let you fight 20 or more people one on one in a gang. You might have a few skills now, but you’re still one person to our literal mob,” said Khalif. Arson shrugged and at the same time conductive waters began to spray from his palms in a soft stream. Khalif’s eyes squinted as he heard the sound of water, but Arson was already in motion.

Let’s hope we didn’t just walk into a bunch of kids who know to aura suppress, thought Arson.

“What the sparks is that sound?” asked one of the gang members.

Arson jumped in place and roared as he rotated himself in the air still connected to the chair. His body turned horizontal in a moment of weightlessness. Then, he dropped, smashing the metal chair they’d placed him in directly into the ground and the conductive waters he’d pooled below himself.

The energy filled water ate through the ropes around his wrist and he performed an upward kick before anyone had time to react.

The ScapeGrace’s low energy levels told Arson that conductive waters would kill or maim the gang members, so he stuck to the teachings of the Olympians in The Valley of the First style.

A spin-kick took out the nearest person to Arson’s back after his heel connected with their jaw. They were sent into a group behind themselves, and Arson charged into the group before anyone else could grab him.

“Boss, get this kid off me!” Arson had run up the body of his first foe and latched onto another young man while standing on the teen’s torso.

The boy caught on fire from head to toe, only for Arson to breathe deeply even as gravity took hold and they teetered. The boy’s eyes went wide as Arson drank flames, and then punched him cleanly in the nose.

Arson’s next attack was as fluid as the previous had been. He continued to chain his movements together and launched off the gang member as his flames went out.

Arson was in the air with another kick before his second opponent managed to hit the ground.

Arson refused to be slowed or caught. Every hold they got him in, he broke. Nearly every punch or kick he blocked, parried or dodged, but the only person who managed to hit him was Khalif.

In a moment of desperation Khalif had grabbed Arson’s long hair and punched him right in the eye. This further enraged Arson and his previous feeling about wearing kid gloves vanished.

The remaining 6 or 7 opponents scattered like rats when the enraged kid fired dozens of explosive water orbs at them.

“Come on!” Arson took a second to look around and realized the fight was over. He took deep breaths and straightened. Young men and women groaned in pain on the ground or stood at a distance in a perimeter around Khalif. After a moment of contemplation, he sighed and spoke.

“Sorry about that. Maybe I should try and hire a more refined group of individuals, I don’t know that you all could truly protect my people as you are now,” said Arson. Khalif looked around at his own people and then back to Arson.

“How the sparks are you this strong, kid? I’ve been Cultivating for almost a decade and can’t move like that. There should be no way that you can.”

Arson shook his head. “I won’t lie and say that I don’t have a few secrets, but none directly resulted in your loss, other than my daily training, which is truly no secret,” said Arson. One of his defeated opponents still tried to reach for his leg with a hand full of sparks. Arson’s mind drifted to the apple he’d dissolved earlier and he tried something as Khalif watched. Arson crouched and tested his new hypothesis.

The orb of conductive waters formed in his hand and Arson put the orb in the path of the lightning as it sparked toward him. He was surprised to feel the mana being sucked from the energy and poured directly into his own body and core.

“What’s the job? And what’s the pay?” asked Khalif. Arson didn’t look up as he drained mana from the sparks until the boy passed out and the energy dispersed.

“Well, I don’t know if I can give the same offer I had in mind previously. Now I think you all will need to pass a test,” said Arson.

“And if we pass, we get paid?”

“Yes. I plan on giving you 100k a week and 10k for each of your people a week, but only if you and yours can survive a night in the dump,” said Arson. He rose to his feet and headed toward the nearby window to see where he was.

He found out they’d taken him to the abandoned home left on the orphanage’s property by the last orphan Keeper. He looked back at Khalif and those that surrounded the young man and once again shrugged with a smile on his face before he walked off.

“You know where to find me.”