1 Welcome to Mardenia

I am never going back.

This was the line Peter repeatedly thought to himself as he took steps out of the port where his ship landed. He has been out in the sea for almost four weeks, and his knees were still wobbly as he hasn't stood on unmoving land for a while.

He stopped on his tracks in the middle of the port where people arrived and left. As he expected, life in this place came and went too fast. People were too busy to mind other people's businesses. Even with a façade a little uncommon, people didn't bother taking a quick glance at him. The side of his lips curled into a slight smile, proving to himself that this place was the best option he had.

"Welcome to Mardenia!" a port staff greeted him as he finally exited the building. The staff handed over what seemed to be map that had the city's geographic image, "We hope you'll enjoy your time here."

Peter took the map and nodded politely. He hailed a cab as soon as it arrived, wanting to settle down as soon as possible.

Inside the cab, he casually slipped in the map given to him by the port attendant. He wasn't going to need it, he thought. He had much more important business in Mardenia than going around the city and checking local spots. Mardenia was an escape, not a holiday.

When the cab driver asked him where they were headed, he realized he had nowhere to go. Where was he supposed to head in a city of a million people? Mardenia was ten times bigger than normal places, he didn't want to get lost on his first day. He groaned in frustration as he realized he should've at least asked people in the ship or the port.

"Sir?" The cab driver called once again, "Excuse me but I was asking where we are off to?"

Peter was clueless but he could not do nothing. He can't keep the driver waiting nor did he want to step out of the cab and cancel the ride. "Do you know which hotel is well-known around this place?" He asked.

The driver smiled widely at him, "The most famous hotel in this city is known worldwide, sir. It's a little expensive but I'm sure it would be worth the price."

He internally scoffed as he listened to the driver trying to advertise the so-called famous hotel too him. If he worked for the hotel, his motives were too obvious. He interrupted the driver's little advertising dialog, "And how far is that place from here?"

"A little less than an hour if the traffic's alright. It's because it lies right in the heart of Mardenia."

Peter found it amusing when he realized the driver was actually trying to earn more out of him. A cab ride for almost an hour would probably earn him his daily target. But on the other hand, the cab driver's suggestion was what he thought of coming here. A luxurious hotel right in the middle of it all is what he exactly needed.

He asked the driver to take him there. Five minutes into the ride, he could feel the man trying to initiate conversation with him so, he took out his earphones and placed both in his ears, not turning any music on.

"Rude." The driver whispered to himself as he saw his passenger putting on earphones.

When Peter heard this, he smirked and immediately closed his eyes.

Not long after he tried to fall asleep, he could hear people shouting from outside and the driver honking his horn violently. He opened his eyes and leaned slightly to the front, making it known to the driver that he was awake.

The driver apologized if he woke him up and explained that there was an accident ahead, "It's not supposed to be a big deal. But that young lady over there keeps insisting that the owner of the car apologize to the food delivery guy. Everyone's stuck in traffic because of her. What's the big deal, anyway?" The cab driver narrated irritably.

Peter diverted his eyes to the commotion outside and there he saw the young lady the cab driver talked about. She shouted nonstop at the owner of the car, urging him to apologize to the other guy. He leaned on the car seat and placed his earphones once again, "It's right for him to apologize anyway. He overtook on the wrong lane and ran into the food delivery man." He silently said.

The cab driver's face seemed shocked at the young man's statement. "How do you know that?" He replied.

Peter simply shrugged and closed his eyes once again. This time, drifting into sleep.

"Look for him in every corner! He shouldn't be far." The voice of a man shouted aggressively, "Dead or alive, we have to bring him back!"

The young man, panted heavily as he tried his best not to make any sound. The wall he hid in was just behind the men looking for him. Out of panic, he failed to notice a small twig lying by his foot. When he tried to run in the opposite direction, he stepped on the twig and a breaking sound echoed in silence.

He was frozen as one of the men approached his position. He sweated uncontrollably and his heart started pounding ferociously. He moved slightly, closer to the wall where he was less visible. As soon as the man was very near, he thought of running away instead and leading them to a chase. But just about he was about to run, a voice called out from afar, "He's running towards east! We saw him. Hurry! Don't let him escape."

At the sound of this call, all the men went scrambling out of the house. There was chaos and commotion for a while but a few moments later, there was nothing but silence.

When he was sure that he was alone, the young man carefully walked out from behind the wall and ran to his room. He grabbed the bag where he packed everything essential. He grabbed the keys to his car swiftly and was about to run out of the house when he was pulled brutally to a corner.

He tried to break free from the person's grip and was about to hit the mysterious person when he heard his voice, "What are you doing? Are you stupid? You can't take your car anywhere. They'll find you."

He looked back and saw a familiar face. It was only a few seconds later when he realized it was a long lost friend who turned into an army man. He finally broke free of his grip. What was a traitor doing in his home and why is he trying to help him? "What are you doing in my house?" He growled in anger, "Weren't you the one who tipped the authorities about my location?"

"No." The latter answered indistinctively, "Trust me. I wasn't the one. Someday, if I'll be given a chance to meet you again, I will surely explain myself. But that's not what's important right now. A ship is leaving for Mardenia tonight. If you can successfully get on that ship without no one noticing, I can make the army believe that you're dead."

He wasn't sure whether he'd believe him or not. It wasn't only once that he betrayed him in the past. But right now, he had little options to stay alive. "Why would I believe you? What if authorities are in the port waiting for me right now?"

The man sighed in defeat, "Look, there is no way I can possibly convince you to believe me. You can follow what I said if you want. I have to go."

"Wait." He called out, but the man walked away continuously, not stopping at all.

"Wake up." He heard the man call back from afar.

He frowned, what was he saying?

But the man continuously shouted, "Wake up! Wake up, sir. Wake up, please."

Startled, Peter opened his eyes with the cab driver by his side, shaking him gently, "Wake up, sir."

He looked at him and then around. He was in front of a tall building which said 'Hotel De Lux'.

Finally, he occurred to him that he was in Mardenia. And this was probably the hotel the driver talked him into staying. "It seemed like you were dreaming, sir. I couldn't wake you up. You scared me." The driver once again interrupted.

"Is this the hotel you were talking about?"

The driver nodded, "Hotel De Lux. The finest place to stay in all of Mardenia."

Peter took out money and handed it to the cab driver. He stepped out of the cab and grabbed his things from the trunk and casually walked away and into the hotel.

Moments later, the cab driver was shouting frantically from where he was. He was trying to get his passenger's attention by jumping up and down, "Sir! You've got it wrong. The money you've given me is thrice more than what you needed to pay!"

Peter heard him but just raised his right hand nonchalantly, not even bothering to look back.

At this, the cab driver had a confused look on his face. He looked at the money and shrugged, "What a strange young man he is." He shouted back one last time, "Welcome to Mardenia, young man! Enjoy the city." And finally left.