Chapter 6: Honour-bound

It's only been a few hours since me and Lepris left that nice restaurant, and nothing important has happened ever since: after briefly showing me the neighbourhood he lives in, a rather dull, boring and uninspired one if I may add, he decided it would be best for me to visit the city centre... an idea I was perfectly fine with, honestly. Although there were a few interesting spots near Lepris's home, nothing really caught my interest... perhaps the inner parts of the city would have piqued my curiosity a bit more the periphery did, I thought.

Lepris's instinct did not fail me in the least and, as soon as we arrived in what is apparently called the 'Five Digits' district, I was astounded by the enthusiasm and loudness of the people around me. The plaza we were now in was constantly flooding with all kinds of people: some small, some tall, some young, some old, some dressed casually, some very luxuriously... the only two things they all had in common were that all of them were extremely busy entering and exiting non-stop the countless shops that delimited the area, and that all of them were carrying with a certain difficulty at least three or four bags that probably weighed far more than they themselves.

At first the name of the district got me a bit confused, but Lepris did the best he could to clarify it to me “Well, there are five squares in the district, and all of them are really popular shopping areas: this one's called 'Marilyn Square', I think, then there's 'Remington Square', 'Fame Square' and then... oh, crud, I don't remember..."

“That's alright: I need not know the exact names anyway. Why is it called 'Five Digits' instead of, for example, 'Five Squares', though?" I asked, curious.

“I don't know... I once read it has something to do with phone booths or something like that, but I'm not sure." he then explained me what 'phone booths' are, since I obviously could not know... and, now that I do, I can understand why there are so few of them around nowadays: it's the same reason why my people fight with swords and not with sticks, after all. Efficiency is key, both in life and in war.

I then accompanied Lepris on an errand to find some new clothes, since he wanted something new to wear tomorrow for some kind of... reunion...? To be honest, I was not paying much attention to his ramblings, so I do not remember what he needs to prepare for exactly. That search lasted far longer than it should have and, when he finally settled on a simple blue t-shirt (which, for the record, starred a small grey 'rabbit' eating an orange vegetable while muttering the unusual sentence “Carrots are the best!"), we were both exhausted from all the walking we did: as I once said, I do not walk around aimlessly very often, and prefer to fly around instead for obvious reasons... my time on 'Earth' is making me pity wingless dragons much more than it should.

Afterwards, we decided to take a small break and have a good rest on one of the many wooden benches that were scattered around the area... and, although most of them had already been taken, one of them was thankfully free: a miracle indeed, which we both very much appreciated. Now that he had done everything he needed to, Lepris told me we were now free to go wherever I wanted or simply relax for a bit if I did not feel like doing anything at all... and then left me immediately afterwards to go buy something called an 'ice cream'. Five minutes have passed since he left, and he has yet to return... and, as time passes, my worry only increases...

My name... is Red. I am a fire dragon, and the only survivor of the massive surprise attack that completely destroyed the capital of my kingdom. While having lunch in a simple restaurant, I met a lady named Fortune, who I found out works for none other than Karma themselves: she appears to be quite friendly, unlike her crazy boss, and has expressed concerns for Lepris's behaviour... and, honestly, I cannot say I disagree with her...

Boredom is getting to me once again and I have very limited options to get rid of it: without anything better to do, I look around and inspect my surroundings, hoping to find something that can pique my interest once more... it does not take me too long to find what I believe is what I am looking for. Right behind the bench I am sitting on, there is a rather large shop window that apparently belongs to no shop in particular, since there are no signs anywhere around it or doors that lead into the edifice whatsoever... what makes me curious in particular, though, is the large device that stands behind the showcase: it appears to be a screen of some sort, but the image it is showing moves and changes every instant, in a way I never thought possible... it is currently depicting a quite distressed human lady, who is reading a white paper aloud in what appears to be a grandly decorated office of some sort.

A few unsettled people are standing in front of the window right now, watching intently as the woman whispers something to them that I cannot quite understand. Whatever that thing is, it definitely looks important, since more and more people are gathering in front of it... needless to say, I do not lose any time: I grab the bag containing Lepris's new shirt, which he left me before leaving to get one of those 'ice cream' things, and immediately run to take a front-row seat (rhetorically speaking) to watch and listen to the human elder.

“Yet another victim of the mysterious deceases that involve dozens of kids and teens in our very nation was discovered this morning: this time, it was a girl named Bethany Hansen, sixteen, daughter of the famous enterpriser Alan Hansen, to pass away mysteriously in unknown circumstances." I do not know how this machine operates, but from what I can gather its purpose is to inform the public of some very important news thanks to the lady inside of it... and, upon learning that simple fact, a strange feeling of regret fills my heart, a feeling I cannot quite explain; meanwhile, the screen shifts to show a picture of a park just like the one I visited yesterday evening, but that is not quite the same “As stated by her father, Bethany was returning home after leaving early a party hosted by one of her school friends at his home in Raven Avenue: she was later found dead in the middle of Hartmann park this morning at roughly six o'clock, when a jogger found her and immediately called an ambulance. However, it was too late: according to the forensics, the girl expired yesterday at around eleven o'clock." the screen then transitions to a very old man, dressed in a long white cape, who adds “Bethany's death follows the same exact pattern as all others before hers: total heart failure and, simultaneously, total brain failure, both of which were instantaneous and asymptomatic. At the moment we're completely clueless as to what caused these failures to begin with: her health was in the norm, and she did not drink any alcoholic drinks or even assume drugs of any kind while at the party, or even before. One thing we're sure of, though, is that these deaths, Bethany's included, aren't random, at all." the screens returns to the lady dressed formally, who concludes the report “Although the police stated multiple times this doesn't appear to be the case, most people now believe these deaths to be the work of an unknown, highly specialized serial killer: even though we do not believe in this theory, we at 'InstaNews' recommend everyone watching not to leave their house late in the evening for the next couple of days, unless strictly necessary. We'll return with Bethany's father and her friends' testimonies after the weather forecast.." the screen then shifts to a very formal man, who explains what the weather will be like in the next couple of days... needless to say, I lose all interest immediately.

I do not know if I want to hear what those other people have to say about the girl, but I do know I have little to no interest in the weather... I just want to sit down for a while, and ponder about what I already know. Thankfully, nobody sat on the bench in my absence, so I hastily reclaim it before Lepris can see me infringing my promise to keep his seat.

The shape-shifter arrives soon afterwards, holding two brown cones in his hands: both of them act like containers for a strange white substance that cumulates above them... and they both appear to be rather tasty, for some reason.

“Ta-daa! Surprised? I got one for you as well!" he says as he hands me the leftmost of the two cones: a faint scent of sugar and milk emanates from the treat, but that only makes my taste buds more excited to eat it. After learning from my friend how to properly consume this snack, I proceed to lick it from top to bottom, eagerly munching on this... frozen delicacy: I soon learn not to eat it too fast, as doing so freezes my head just as quickly... but I find controlling myself quite hard, to be honest. This 'ice cream' is one of the best snacks I have had in a while... and the perfect way to shake those nasty thoughts away from me, at least for one moment.

Soon after finishing my cone, I hear a voice right next to me ask “Hey, why are you so quiet? You haven't even thanked me for the ice cream..." I realize the man who just spoke to me is Lepris, who seems to be extremely concerned for my well-being... darn, I even forgot he was here in the first place: what is wrong with me?

“Is something wrong? You look like you've just seen a ghost!" he further inquires, quite unsettled by my odd behaviour.

I sigh embarrassed as I reply “You are perfectly right: pardon me, I am indeed grateful for your kind thought... I was just thinking on something that is bugging me quite a lot." he then asks me to explain myself, and I do just that “While I was waiting for you, I noticed an old lady speaking from inside those screens over there, giving out precious information to everyone willing to listen... so I checked it out for a moment, and learned of some mysterious deaths that have happened in the recent period." he follows my gaze and spots the devices I am talking about “Oh, alright... yeah, that's the news for you: if you want, I can teach you how it works-"

“Lepris, I am sorry, but that is the last thing that concerns me at the moment..." I immediately stop him, my pain begging to be let out “That girl, Bethany or whatever, died yesterday at eleven o'clock: I woke up in your world one hour before! If only I knew where she was, if only Karma told me about it... maybe I could have helped her! Maybe I could have even saved her life!" I calm down a little and add, very disappointed in myself “I feel like it's all my fault..."

“Oh, come on! Don't be so harsh on yourself!" Lepris softly embraces my back with his arm, trying desperately to snap me out of my depression “What if you really did know she was gonna die? If you didn't know what would've caused her death in the first place, you wouldn't have been able to avoid it either... and, if they didn't say anything, it's likely this Karma guy didn't know about her death too: nobody can read the future, after all. Seriously, there's no reason to hate yourself for something like this!"

“Well, there are rumours this is a killer's doing: if this were really the case, then maybe I could have stopped them!" I try to object, but he immediately dismisses my claim “But there's no proof this 'killer' even exists! I read some articles about these happenings, and from what I can gather there's 'no evidence of wounds of any kind on the victim's bodies' or anything like that: if somebody really is murdering these kids, then you have to explain me how they're doing it!" he does make a valid point... maybe I really am taking it too far.

“I... I am sorry: stress really is getting to me..." I apologize, disgusted with the way I spoke to my own friend “Maybe I am taking it too personal... perhaps I am overreacting because of what happened to my kingdom yesterday: I was not able to save anyone, back then... and I do not want that to happen ever again..."

“I know..." he pats me on the shoulder and smiles at me, confident “I'm sure you'll get through this, and I'll do my best to help you-"

“Hey, look at those two sweethearts over there!" I hear a man shout from a distance, followed by the laughter of a few more people: four humans, one of which is a horribly dressed woman, is chatting between themselves, seldom looking in our direction “Look at that one: isn't he dressed like, a schoolgirl? They should make dressing like that illegal in this country..." from what I can gather, they have the clear intent of mocking us, more specifically my friend, from afar; they have no intention of challenging us upright. but they do want to get our attention... Lepris is deliberately ignoring them and is attempting to convince me to do the same, but I will not be stomped any more by the likes of them.

“You four! Do you know anything about 'good manners'? Because I find what you are doing right now very offensive!" I stand up and shout at the group, full of rage; its members appear to be very surprised by my intervention, and are not saying anything at the moment “I do not know why you are mocking me or my friend, but you better stop right now before I make you regret your words!" Lepris immediately stands up as well, but not for the reason I hoped he would: he desperately tries to stop me from confronting them, almost as if he were scared of these filthy barbarians.

“Heh, I would listen to your girlfriend if I were you, mate!" one of the three men says with a thick accent, prompting the other two and the girl to chuckle “Whatever, we need to go somewhere else anyway... bye, weirdo!" as they all disappear in the ever-growing crowd, one of the other two men turns towards Lepris, bows mockingly and adds “M'lady!" before running away with the rest of his crew. It takes all my patience (and Lepris's firm hand) to prevent me from hunting those fools down like the insufferable brats they are... though what just happened reminds me of something important I never had a chance to talk about with my friend.

“Alright, we need to discuss some serious matters." I look at my comrade, who turns away from me, both scared and horribly embarrassed “Why do so many people harass you? First yesterday night, then today at lunch time... and now this! I am beginning to think I am missing some very important detail... one that I want you to explain me yourself: why do so many people bully you... so casually?"

He does not answer immediately, and instead returns to the bench, sits down and invites me to do the same: evidently this revelation is even more important than I originally thought. He sighs heavily as he answers, somewhat ashamed of himself “...Because of the way I dress."

“Is that it?" I reply, somewhat confused “I mean, I understand the way you dress could confuse someone into thinking you are not a male, but apart from that I sincerely cannot comprehend what is the issue-"

“That is the issue!" he replies harshly “Look around, Red: I'm the only person dressing so lightly in the whole plaza... doesn't that seem a bit odd to you? Besides, look at my shirt colour: it's freaking pink, which is also my favourite colour... do you still not get it? The way I dress doesn't confuse people: on the contrary, it lets them know precisely what kind of person I am..." I see many people walking around right past us, but none of them are bothered by our discussion... are they really so immersed in their own business they cannot even notice our bickering?

“Does that mean you are... a woman?" I inquire, very confused.

“No... oh, for crying out loud!" he clearly wants to say something important, but embarrassment is preventing him from saying it and that seems to be bugging him quite so; after some time spent angrily muttering something inaudible, he finally erupts “I'm gay, alright?" well, now I know what is troubling him... and yet, that does not help me in the least: what is a 'gay'? I ask for further explanation, which makes him even more furious “It means I 'like' guys just like you 'like' girls! It's that simple!" oh, I get it now... wait, why would a male 'like' another male... in that way?

“Wait, is that really... something that can happen?" I ask, genuinely surprised “Father never explained that aspect of 'love' to me... and I cannot say I ever heard something even remotely similar from anyone else either... I have to admit, I cannot understand the logic behind it..."

“You're not helping Red..." he sighs, rather upset by my response; feeling like I crossed the line, I immediately apologize and ask a more... sensible question “Is this sort of... mindset allowed in your society?"

“I mean... yeah, in theory." he replies as he turns the other way, probably not wanting me to look at him crying; it appears as though his rage is slowly shifting into sadness, but I cannot say for sure that it's an improvement “Lots of people are open-minded and support, or at least tolerate, that kind of mentality... but there are still lots of bigots around, and I'm the perfect target for them to pick on." he chuckles grimly before adding, in a very depressing tone “It's ironic, you know? I began dressing like this because I wanted to be loved for who I am... because I wanted to feel safe... but, ever since then, my situation only got worse: I guess this shirt isn't doing a very good job at protecting me, huh?" I did not know he suffered this much because of something so silly... this is all my fault, I should not have acted the way I did with him: I need to remedy my mistake at once.

“Do not listen to those people: you are fine just the way you are." I tell Lepris, who turns towards me with tearful eyes; I add, hoping to sound enough convincing for him to actually listen to what I have to say “It's true, I never heard of male dragons that love other male dragons... but that does not mean I do not respect the fact at all! My father once told me that love bypasses military rank, social status and even tribe membership... so why not gender barriers as well?" a faint smile appears on his face, meaning my attempts at persuading him are working smoothly “Really?" he asks for my confirmation, still somewhat scared “You're not saying this just to make me feel better, are you?"

“Of course not! However, please allow me to say that, in the end, what is most important in a solid relationship is not physical attraction, but mutual trust, mutual support and mutual passion: once you find someone who you can have this kind of relationship with, you will know you have found your real soulmate... it might even be a girl, for all you know!" I make a little joke at the end, which he quite approves and appreciates: knowing I made the right approach makes me feel quite happy with myself, and also makes me realize I have gone a long way since yesterday... it's amazing to think I matured so much in only one day.

“Thanks man, I really needed it." Lepris thanks me for my moral support, and adds “You know, up until now I never stood up for myself because I felt like it wouldn't have changed anything, that bigots would've remained bigots no matter what I did... but now I understand what Fortune told me before: I have to fight for myself and what I believe in, or at least try... it might not mean anything in the long run, but I have to believe it will."

“Indeed, that's the spirit! Now, let us go-" I am interrupted by a loud, far too loud noise: it looks like... an explosion? A very near one as well, maybe only one or two districts away... everyone in the plaza is losing their minds, running around like foolish children, attempting to seek shelter from this invisible menace; however, I, for one, cannot follow their example, and immediately run in the direction of the blast with Lepris in tow.

“Hey, where are you going?" he inquires, slightly panicked.

“Towards the source of the commotion!" I reply, trying to be brief to save some air in my lungs “There might be people in danger! You know I cannot simply ignore the possibility!" my explanation appears to have been enough: my friend sighs in defeat as he comments “Alright, then: let's go be the heroes..."

Panic is rapidly spreading all over the city as the streets overflow with screaming citizens and a massive number of those coloured vehicles Lepris calls 'cars': in the span of only two minutes, crossing the street has become an activity as risky as gambling your entire treasure... but we cannot let something as stupid as that stop us, and bravely risk our lives for the cause... while, in the meantime, earning lots of insults and curses from the fleeing humans that, I find out, live inside those metallic monsters.

Eventually, we reach the source of the explosion: in the middle of a now empty street stands a burning, half-destroyed five-story house that appears to be on the verge of collapse... the first floor is enveloped in an ocean of flames, which prevents anyone still inside from fleeing the edifice. I can see a woman and two kids screaming and waving their arms behind an open window on the fourth floor, but, apart from theirs, no other window is open and no other people are requesting to be saved: I can only hope they are the only people still inside, because they appear to be the only ones we can possibly help... that is, if I can come up with a plan first.

As we approach the building, a woman with long brown hair, sharp blue eyes, a long olive jacket and an air of superiority stops us “What are you doing? Run away! This area is extremely dangerous: that building could crumble at any moment!" it appears as though she has self-appointed herself to chief of operations... although there is nobody over here to give orders to: from what I have seen. people are too busy protecting themselves to help the people who are really in danger... utterly disgusting.

“We are here to help." I inform her, a determined look on my face “What's the status? Is there anyone else inside the building?" at first she does not know what to answer, seemingly shocked by my bold statement, but she regains her composure a moment later and responds “Only those three, apparently: from what I can gather, the other tenants were not inside at the moment of the explosion... there's no way to be sure, though."

“Why are they still inside? Aren't there any fire-escape stairs they can use to get out?" Lepris asks, probably referring to those staircases I usually see on the side of houses and other similar-looking buildings: a quick glance at the edifice reveals there really are no such stairs... but there is a mass of black contorted metal lying on the side, which could have possibly been what he is asking for.

“The fire-escape stairs were destroyed in the explosion, and cannot be used to evacuate the building..." the woman explicates, a desperate look on her face; as more and more rubble falls from atop the edifice, she adds, quite concerned “At this rate, the building will crumble before the firefighters can even arrive..."

“Not if we intervene!" I hush her and turn to Lepris “Can you reach that window?"

“Not by myself..." he replies as his legs transform into those of a rabbit “I'll need your help to propel me there." the lady is frightened by my friend's sudden transformation, and is even more unsettled when I morph my arms into those of a dragon: at first she shouts something along the lines of “Stop right there!" but, after almost getting hit by a falling tile, decides to run away from the building and oversee the rescue attempt from afar “I don't trust you two... but I have no choice, so do your work and try not to kill anyone." I tell her she does not need to worry, and that we will save those civilians no matter what; she does not appear to be satisfied by my reassuring words, but that is all she is going to get from me.

“Are you ready?" I ask the shape-shifter as he moves a few feet backwards, ready to make the seemingly impossible jump “Heck yeah! Let's do this!" he then sprints towards me and jumps forward at the last possible second: I grab his feet with both my hands and propel him upwards with all my strength, allowing him to miraculously reach the window he needed to. He climbs inside, not without difficulty, and disappears for a few seconds; shouts can be heard from all the way here, which means that, perhaps, neither the kids nor the woman want to trust a shape-shifter like Lepris with their lives, or maybe that they just are not brave enough to believe in my friend... but I do, and I am confident he can save them by himself.

Lepris then reappears from the other side of the window, holding the two little kids above his shoulders and keeping them safe within his hands “I got them, what now?" he shouts as more of the building comes crashing down to the ground.

“If you are confident enough you can survive the impact, you have to drop down before it is too late!" I reply, unsure we have enough time to save the lady as well.

“Y-Yeah..." he says as he breaths in heavily and jumps from the fourth floor, prompting the two kids (and their mother as well) to scream like bewildered demons; after what appeared to be a dreadfully long amount of time, though it only lasted a few instants, my friend lands on the ground in one piece... spooked to death, but in one piece.

The woman who tried to stop us runs towards Lepris and grabs the children, before commanding us “I'll take care of the kids: you go save their mother! Quick!" she is acting a bit too pretentiously than I would like... but she appears to be used to it, so I decide not to question it for the moment: after all, I am not really following her orders...I am only doing what I believe is right, and Lepris is with me.

We prepare for another jump as more and more of the darn building loudly crashes down to the ground: as the otherkin reaches once again the window the lady is awaiting to be rescued at, a huge crack in the front wall suddenly expands and destroys the window itself, though Lepris somehow manages to enter it before he can fall down along with the rest of the rubble.

“Alright, I'm in... coming down now!" he says as he grabs the woman just like he did with her children and prepares to jump down... unfortunately, the floor under him abruptly breaks, transforming his jump into an outright uncontrollable descent: the surprise causes him to let go of the lady, who screams quite audibly along with her children as she quickly descends to her demise...

No, I will not allow that: my instinct telling me what to do, I position myself right under the woman and grab her mid-air as gently as I can, confident enough Lepris will survive... I do not have enough time to check, though, as the entire building falls in the direction of the street, threatening to kill us all below its massive weight.

“Get out of the way!" I hear the pretentious woman yell as I run away from the crumbling building, still holding the screaming lady in my hands, just before it crashes down on the road. I turn back and look around for my friend, but all I can see is rubble and dust... he could not have possibly died, could he?

I yell his name, and after a few seconds I receive a satisfying answer “Red? Are you okay?" thank goodness, he's alive and well: he has run towards the other side of the road, and there is no way I can reach him from over here... but that is the last of my concerns at the moment. I ask him if he really is alright, and he replies “Yeah, the kids and the other girl here are safe and sound... we did it! We actually saved them all!" I honestly cannot believe we truly did it... and yet, that is not a lie: I can distinctly hear both of the two children crying for their mother, asking her if she's alright, and their mother herself calling their names and telling them she's perfectly fine; saying I am overflowing with joy cannot even begin to describe how I currently feel! This success can only mark the beginning of a... wait, what's this loud, annoying noise? It seems to be coming from those black and white 'cars' coming towards the destroyed building, the ones with the red and blue lights shining right above them.

“Red, that's the police! I don't know if we want to stay any longer..." having a close encounter with the Law is not exactly how I want to end my afternoon... I think I will pass, to be honest “Agreed: let's rendezvous at your home as soon as possible. I will begin heading there now, and I suggest you do the same."

“Wait!" the crying parent briefly stops me “Before you go... I wanted to thank you for saving my kids' life. Thank you, really." her gratitude is more than I could ever ask for, and it makes me feel even better about myself; I kindly welcome her thanks and wish her good luck, then sneak in a nearby alley as she pretends not to look and disappear from everyone's sight...