Elywen turned to Victor whose lips spoke of words so softly she was
nearly forced to place her ear right next to his voice to interpret
them. Even then, she felt as if the air about her body was so strained
by the suspense that a simple motion as bending over was nearly
impossible without sending out a wave of sound all about them. She gave
the man a slight nod, and followed at a considerably slower pace as he
ushered En toward the fruit stall's shabby structure.
"Must you push so hard?! And aren't we going in the opposite direction?"
Each word that En spoke was the equivalent of a dagger being lodged
deep in Elywen's body. She could not possibly describe the mixture of
terror or anger that she felt. She was sure, there was such a surplus of
both emotions that they fought to break out of her slender figure and
flood the world in mass chaos. Her arms flew up in shock, her hands
forming claws poised to strike the boy down in anger as her face twisted
in an expression of bewilderment and urgency.
Her eyes captured the movement the government men made, turning
their direction, placing their alert eyes upon the two figures out in
the open. Victor had made it safely behind the wooden structure, but the
same could not be said about the other two. Elywen's expression showed
all there was to show, wishing the boy wouldn't speak another word.
En did quite the contrary. "There are fruit stands everywhere. Must
you go for the ones here? I thought the government was coming, I doubt
we have the luxury to eat fruit. I'm sure we can eat later, nameless.
Let's just keep going, alright?"
Elywen's voice finally broke through, an outlet from the building
tension that pressed against her from the inside. "SHUT UP BOY!!!" Her
hand flung over her mouth, her eyes wide with the realization of her
mistake.
The two men advanced foreword. "Hey you two!" Their voice seemed
devoid of the cruelty that Elywen had described earlier. In fact, they
spoke more with the intention of a person asking kindly for directions.
Unfortunately, the heavy guns they bore in their hands, their military
suits marked with the insignia of the government and the black
mask/helmet they bore over their head was enough change any inquiry for
directions into the interrogation of a tormentor.
Elywen darted a glance at Victor, her eyes alight with the message
she wished to give to him. He was safe, he should stay put, he should
stay in hiding. They even held an apologetic look, but Victor had little
to time to decipher the meaning. Elywen tore her gaze from the stall
and then toward En who looked completely oblivious of the situation.
"Aha! Are these the government officials that you're talking about?
Well well." The boy bent low in a respective gesture. The two men slowed
in their advance. The boy looked innocent enough; after all, he was
humbled in their presence. The girl on the other hand, looked ready to
break into crazed frenzy of hysteria.
Elywen wrapped her hand around En's frail arm in an iron clasp.
"Time to go..." she squeaked and tugged hard as she broke into a strong
dash the opposite direction.
"Hey! Stop!" The kindness they attempted to show before, despite
being hidden behind their armed state, completely vanished. From their
own experience, no one ran from the police without having guilt for
committing a crime. The very crime they sought on the streets of the
poverty-ridden city was that of the forbidden arts, something that
created a suspect in everyone. They charged foreword, not as nimble as
the two they chased, but their step was sure-footed and years of
training showed through.