3 | Echoes of Another

The sun peeks at Tauten over the hills—an obsessed lover to a town that bids it goodbye. It was almost like it was begging to stay—but the Earth continued to spin anyway. Allison sympathizes, but she wasn't sure which for. She clenches her fists tight as she stopped to set up her camp.

It didn't take long to gather appropriate kindling. The trees around were still plenty ripe with wood—she knew the further away from Tauten the less green she was going to see.

The hills themselves looked drained of their life that had once propagated. It made her wonder how well the ruffians were able to make do with what must be harder terrain to settle down in. It was only a passing thought—not like she is responsible for their upkeep.

Once the fire is up she sat down beside her pack and pulled out some of her reserves. The fire is a nice comfort in a world where so little exists—for the first time in a while her mind isn't racing or flooding with adrenaline. She took a generous bite into the meat and tears it with warmth flooding her body. Eating good food just felt right. She's lost the taste for seasoning years ago, so she's thankful for anything that had a natural kick to it. A part of her regretted being so nonchalant with the creature she had killed before Felix spoiled her dinner—she was being petty and she knew it. Throwing away a fresh kill like that wasn't the way you lived out here in the wild. You have to be smart with every move you make...and she had a lapse in judgment.

That was the kind of person Felix was—one of the only people to get under her skin like that. Even if he couldn't read her mind, he could read her emotions, and that was almost just as bad.

She refused to feel bad for the way she left him. He wasn't giving her a choice—the things he asked were things she could not give.

No matter what.

It is over. He's going to come chasing after her—this she has no doubt—but he's not going to be able to do it now. Pact or no pact. He needs to heal his wound—and should some demonic will overcome him and he does crawl his way here...well, she can walk faster than he can crawl.

Still, thinking of him stays her appetite. She sets her food aside and curses herself for ruining a good meal twice now.

To get her mind off of him she figures she might as well to a little physical maintenance. She bent her right and worked to undo the connectors. The titanium leg was a result of her study of metalworking when she was younger—how long ago that time in Rosae it has been.

It connected directly to the nerve endings in her body—a custom rig she made herself. It had certainly gone through dozens of prototypes—many of which she had to make do with what she had. Now, she sometimes forgets it's ever there...that was a lie, she never forgets, but it's nice to be able to do what she needs to do and not have it hamper her.

The fire glazes off of the metal and gives her just enough light to inspect for any cracks or bends. The whole lot took twenty minutes of careful inspection. Satisfied, and her stomach growling after the intense focus, she smiled small at the small victories. She sets the leg beside her and stretches out both arms—letting the fire's warm embrace take her in. Picking up and finishing the meat, she licks her fingers and stuffs the wrapping neatly back in her pack.

A sound from the bushes catches her attention and she hones in on it immediately. She thinks it's Felix who has managed to catch up with her, and she curses him in her mind for what he's going to make her do—but she relaxes when she saw a tonpa poke its little head out. Tonpa were small squirrel-like rodents whose face is curved and hooked like a bird's beak. As it scuttles closer toward the fire it exhales out a soft "ton-pa-ton-pa-ton-pa," as the front of its head bobs up and down. The poor thing can barely support its own weight.

Allison has only had a few encounters with the tonpa. They exploded a few years back—something about new mutations in local wildlife. They didn't live long—as evidenced by the apparent difficulty in this one's movement.

It scrambled to her side and looked up at her with its misshapen eyes—the poor thing has already begun to deteriorate. She exhaled and dug into her pack and snapped off a small chunk of tomorrow's dinner.

The tonpa sniffed the meat curiously, looking back up to Allison slowly with a suspicious look. Allison chucked the meat off near the bush. She knew if she set it beside her the animal would take it, but then stay and ask for seconds. And then what? Run off, hopefully. But what if it didn't? What if it wanted more? She couldn't offer anything else.

The tonpa ran after the meat and picks it up slowly, then cranks its head back and swallowed it whole. It hobbles over and wheels its head up to look at Allison directly.

"I have no more for you."

The tonpa blinks unevenly.

"Nope. Do you know what will happen if I do? I'll like you. And you'll do something cute, but ultimately dumb. I'll find it endearing. I'll shoo you away and then I'll face some sort of adversity—something I couldn't plan for and somehow you'll come to help. I don't know what you can do, but you'd do it, because that's your plan, right? Start the manipulation early and earn my trust—then BAM. You're gone, and I'm worse than I was before I met you."

The tonpa stares.

"I'm not falling for it. I have half a mind to end..." but she stopped. End your obvious suffering. That's what she was going to say, but who was she to decide that? She would be making the same mistake that everyone who had hurt her would. No, she wouldn't end the tonpa—and especially for a fantasy that she made in her own hysteria.

She relaxed against her pack and took a deep breath, closing her eyes. Too many thoughts to think about and none of them are pleasant. She feels the tiny feet of the tonpa on her left leg and hears a chattering sort of sound. She opens her eyes quick to see the tonpa nibbling on one of the bolts of her right leg.

"Hey!" She yanks it away from him—the tonpa screams a high pitched sound—she saw that she's chipped its tooth.

"Get out of here!" She yells, more exasperated than angry. "Please just go."

Not sure if it's understood her, or if it simply wanted to avoid any more pain, it hobbles off into the darkness. She sighs and held the leg close to her chest. She desperately wants just one night where she doesn't have to attach the damned thing—but knows she'd regret it the very first night she didn't. The time it would take for her to attach it in a rushed panic would be too much time…

She reconnects the leg and wiggles the metal toes at the end. Unsatisfied, but willing to deal with it she lays back—reaching inside the pack to grab out her tablet. She stares at what she has written—trying to mentally launch herself back into that mindset. She stares at the words...and they echo back like statues—preventing her entry into that world.

She tried to scroll down and start the old fashioned way—carve a path herself. The momentum would carry if she willed it…but the momentum never came. She wrote the wrong words, and she kept saying to herself it didn't matter if the words were wrong so long there were words at all, but she knew that wasn't going to work. That was like saying it'd be fine to cross the bridge if it were made of water vapor...it just wouldn't work.

Annoyed, she powers the tablet off and rubs her hands across her face. Damn it. Her battery wasn't eternal, and lord only knew when she'd find a charger that fit—much less a suitable place to charge.

Part of her knows that it'll die before she does anything with the story, but so long that she try to finish it...that much would be enough.

She closes her eyes and her mind gently floats back to Nasseu Middle School. She's unaware of what day it is—aside from the fact that it's bright and early. She's no longer Allison Fae—no, she's looking from outside of whosever body this is—a girl about her age when she was in Nasseu—yes, but definitely not her. She had long, dark hair that dropped past her shoulders. When she turned slightly to say something to a passing kid, Allison saw she had deep blue eyes. Just as gently as she entered the dream she slid out of it and woke to a gentle breeze back near Tauten. Part of her expected the tonpa to have returned to her camp, but it wasn't anywhere in sight.

She breathes a sigh of relief and looked around herself for any other curiosities. When she's sure she's alone, she began her day. She began to pack her things together inside the pack and looked around for a source of water. She closes her eyes and waits. She doesn't hear anything at first, but then the slight sound of running water catches.

She strapped the bag tight she ran in the direction of the sound. She comes upon a rushing stream leading down and away from her destination—thankfully the spot she had found was running pretty healthily. Try to avoid collecting still water—if you don't have a filter that is almost guaranteed to get you sick. The words of her mentor rung out in her head. She was thankful she had someone to watch over her as she was still getting used to...all this.

She swung her back around and dug for her bottles. The first was empty and the second only had about a quarter remaining of lukewarm water. She took the last swig and carries them over toward the edge of the water. She bent all the way down and grazes the surface of the water, filling both bottles to the brim. She's have to boil the water later, but that was later, now she could begin to bathe and clean herself off. She set her pack down against a nearby tree, stripping down everything but the armband that held her lance within. Could never be too careful. She washed what she could and dried herself thoroughly. It was warm out, so she didn't have to worry about getting sick from the elements. She was thankful for that. When she finishes she redresses, fastening the cloak around her. She's as clean as she's going to get.

She grabbed the pack back up and began walking. In the corner of her eye she saw a figure with long, dark hair walk into the bushes. She stopped, frozen, and saw that the figure doesn't reemerge. She held still a few seconds longer before drawing her lance, and backing up slowly. She reached the bush and pulled a part of it aside with the lance, revealing emptiness inside, as if nothing were there at all.