Chapter 10 - Filling In Some Blanks

Yin walked aimlessly through the busy and noisy streets. She wanted to be hidden among the crowd so that she could blend in. Although she was surrounded by thousands of people, she still couldn’t ignore that feeling of someone following her. She kept looking behind her but no one was looking at her. She kept her grip on the strap of the tote bag and picked up her pace

Up ahead, she saw a small alley to her right and discreetly went in. Dark places didn’t intimidate her. She walked as quietly as she could but she didn’t go unnoticed. First, there were two large men in front of her, blocking her path. She turned back and three others blocked her escape path. One man from each side emerged from the shadows.

“How rare. It’s not like all pretty girls like you would be foolish enough to get caught by us.” The man in front of her smirked. Yin’s stoic face didn’t change. Instead she reached into her pocket and pulled out a few bills. She purposely unraveled the first bill and held it up, offering it.

The men laughed. “You seriously think you can buy your way out? Give me a break, kid!”

She held up another bill, on top of the first. “I will count to three for you to take the money and get out of my way. I don’t want to waste any more time with you.”

From a corner behind the crowd, someone was watching her carefully with his large doe eyes.

The men were bewildered. “One,” Yin counted.

They didn’t move. “Two!” She continued.

The men charged and she jumped up and held onto the balcony railing from above. They all crashed into each other. She tossed her bag and money into the air and kicked the men to the ground. The gang took the opportunity to pin her down but she dodged every single grimy hand they threw. She also moved out of the way so that they would end up beating each other. When only one man was standing, he was quivering in fear as Yin took her battle stance. She made a feint but he flinched and collapsed in trauma.

She caught her bag and the two bills and finished, “Three.”

Yin suddenly heard a quiet footstep and jumped up to the fire escape and waited. The newcomer was very different compared to the seven burly men from before. He had a lean and skinny frame with a gentle and feminine face full of curiosity. His eyes were similar to a girl and his skin was very fair. He had a very stylish brunette mushroom hairstyle that seemed to move with every step.

He was wearing clothing that was the same style as the city’s fashion. Yin felt sloppily dressed when she saw his outfit. He had a black knit scoop shirt and blue washed-out jeans. His shoes were barely noticeable for her to see. 

Yin felt his presence - it was very strong, very much like Lay and Tao. She didn’t know that she was holding her breath for a long time until his voice called out, “I know you’re still here. Come down.”

If he wasn’t so calm and warm-voiced, she would have taken the chance to attack right away. She leapt off the fire escape and landed with a light thud. When she stood up straight, she realized that he was taller than her and yet he looked like a child from above.

“Who are you?”

The stranger held his hands out saying, “Don’t rush, please. First of all, it’s not safe to stay here any longer. Let’s go to a place where we can chat quietly,” he winked. Yin clutched her hidden Origin Arm and took a tentative step back because she wasn’t so sure on whether to listen to his proposal. He was about to take another step outside of the alley when he turned his head.

“Shall we?”

Yin raised her eyebrows and deadpanned her face. She began to follow him.

The mysterious stranger led her to a contemporary cabaret cafe where there was always a live performance all day long. They both sat at the back of the hall but barely touched their drinks. She tried to avoid his studious gaze on but she couldn’t take it anymore.

“Excuse me?”

He snapped out of his trance and apologized. “I’m sorry. I haven’t introduced myself yet, did I? My name is Lu Han. Xi Lu Han.”

“Zhang Yin.” she replied with her own name. Somehow, her name didn’t roll off her tongue very well like it used to.

“You do not look foreign. Where do you come from?”

She was about to answer him but she wasn’t so sure whether to lie or tell the truth. A part of her wanted to say Hua Jiang but the other wanted to say that she doesn’t have a home. 

“Do you not have a home?” He hinted.

Yin stayed silent. Lu Han peered into her eyes and searched through them. “So familiar, yet so different.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I see you as a human, but I can feel traces of Argentic Power within your system. This is the first time I’ve seen someone in this condition.”

Yin felt her head ache in confusion. “Please tell me why it has to do with me.” Lu Han sighed.

“I will say this once but you must remain silent.” He whispered. Yin gave him her full attention.

“It has been over a year since this tragedy. Our society is dying and we are desperate to look for more lost Argents. My faction's main duty is to recruit talented young Argents to be placed in different factions, but as of now, any Argent roaming free is as good as we can obtain.” She felt like her heart stopped at the news. She fisted the large hoodie and continued to listen.

“For a few years until the last, there was a concentration camp for Argents in a 3rd World Country called Bunshi. It was a one-way path to death and a source of power for Daemens. There was a female Human-born Argent who sacrificed her life to save her own kind. Out of thousands that returned to the society through the portal, ninety percent did not arrive. Her own twin sister, also Human-born, along with two of our members of the faction have been taken captive.

“They were all presumed dead based from the survivors’ witnesses. The heroine and her comrades did not return. The members of my faction were ordered to search for them and to make a thorough search of the destroyed facility. Our members found the Daemen Lord’s corpse but the heroine’s body was missing. Her tracks were still there, but it was assumed that she may have disintegrated into the life particles in the air we breathe.

“I have been ordered to search through this country for a month and yet there are no Argents here. We are also forced to limit our abilities unless necessary, hence our symbols. In other words, those with Cruxes are restricted from summoning them until we are given the order to do so.”

Lu Han rolled his sleeve and revealed his bangle. It held the symbol of Telepathy. Yin flinched and he caught her.

“I’m not surprised that you know this symbol because I can feel a powerful source of energy coming from your bag. It is similar to our abilities.”

“May I ask who this heroine was?” She meekly asked. Lu Han softly smiled and opened his mouth.

“Her name was...” His voice suddenly felt very far away when she turned her head to the stage. She was captivated by the male performer dancing with a white blazer and a bowler hat. He wasn’t wearing any flashy attire but rather his choreography completely captured her. His face was constantly blinded by the lights but she didn’t bother moving.

As soon as the dancer locked his line of vision with hers, Yin’s sight shifted to the dream she dreamt - the mirror, the ornate architecture and the person embracing her.

Her recollection was violently interrupted by a forceful push to the side. She knocked into tables, bistro chairs and glassware. There was a gust of wind in the middle that the audience was trying to escape from. She was about to reach into her pouch to equip the Origin Rune of Time but stopped herself. She couldn’t expose her weapon. 

Another tornado of wind was firing towards her and she quickly rolled away. Yin cursed to herself and placed her hand on her chest where her mark was.

"Pegasus," she breathed out as the turquoise crystal feather emerged, and broke it in half with her bare hands so that her Crux could be summoned. Pegasus spread its wings to blow the debris away and Yin mounted on it. It trotted towards Lu Han, who grabbed Yin's reaching hand and hopped on behind her. They plowed through the window and her Crux galloped through the streets and they didn’t stop until they reached a safer part of the city. After they dismounted from it, Yin recalled Pegasus back into her mark. While catching their breath, she asked what street they were at.

“We’re on Appleby Crescent, home to all the oldest theaters.”

She felt an eerie vibe from the word, theater. She scanned the area and saw different posters and billboards of the newest recitals and musicals. 

“Yin? What happened back there?” She couldn’t speak because she didn’t know how to explain herself. She immediately went on her feet and searched through the two rows of unique theaters. Lu Han couldn't understand how she could summon her Crux so easily and maintain such control.

“Yin?” Lu Han called out. Yin had no time to take in what was going on in her mind. She reached the end of the street where the same dark theater was standing tall. Lu Han caught up and demanded to know what was going on.

“This building - I saw it in my dream.” He looked up and recognized the architecture.

“This is the first opera house built in this city. There were rumors about ghost lurking the isles and the corridors but I highly doubt that they are true.” He stopped to see her holding onto her small pouch very tightly.

“There is something in there I need to find - a source of power to help save the world.” She said. Lu Han turned her around and grasped her shoulders. “You have too many riddles! What are you trying to say? You always leave me with more questions and I can’t answer them by myself!”

Yin flinched by his sudden outburst but he regretted his actions. “Forgive me. It’s very difficult to read you. You are like a blank book to my abilities. Your mind is like a jigsaw puzzle with countless pieces missing and the picture cannot be determined.”

She lowered her head and closed her eyes. “I can’t tell you.” She lowered her bag, took out her clothed sword, loosened the drawstring and whipped it out. “There’s an important task I need to do but I don’t want others to know because it’s too complicated. I just want those around me to be-”

Yin was cut off by a torrent of negative energy, bursting the doors open. In a blink of an eye, she was caught in a one-arm embrace and the enemy said, “I’m going to borrow her from you.” Too shocked to move, Yin and the stranger disappeared into a cloud of smoke. Her sword and tote bag was left behind.

Lu Han stood up, holding his arm from the impact as he breathed out a name he could not believe to be alive.

“Kai.”