In the early mornings, Tunukor seems a little more tamed, only the sellers who are setting up their markets were awake. going to the herb sellers, Liane wants to find antibiotics and potions that would help Garret.
She is headed to the eastern city markets, a place where therapeutics of all sorts are imported from the far east of the kingdom. With the use of bonds strictly forbidden in big cities, Liane walks the mile long journey.
The markets were filled with colors, each seller looking to catch the eyes of their prey. They yelled to Liane the rehearsed advertisements for their niche products, even in the early mornings, sellers didn't feel an itch of tiredness.
Most of the products in the eastern markets were catered towards the standard of beauty, a magic drink that makes your hair healthy, an apple embedded with the energy of fallen angels, or a pendant that makes you smell good forever. Most of the items were fake.
Hearing a sudden loud noise from beside her, she covers her face with her hood, on edge ever since that incident yesterday.
"You think you can get away! Get back here!" the voice of a man said.
as she looked over, Liane forged a little ball of flames in her hands ready to defend herself. But the man wasn't talking to Liane, he grabbed two kids by their hands, a young boy, and his little sister.
"Let me go, I'm sorry! I'll never do it again!" The boy cried, he was built like a stick, and the man was ready to snap him in half.
"Yeah right, you Buggers always say the same thing." the man replied.
"No! I'm serious this time, please let me go."
"Don't you worry kids, I'll let you go," the man said menacingly, He raised their hands up high, and pulled out a sword, "this way, you'll never steal again!"
But before he is able to strike, Liane grabs onto his forearms, "Stop, I'll pay for the items, let them go."
"Move on lady, these Freaks deserve what's coming to them."
Liane grips his arm harder, "I said let them go"
The man scoffs, "you'll pay double then", he lets go of the kids and Liane gives him the double price.
"Dang it, that's all the money I brought for the medicine" Liane thought to herself.
The kids approach Liane. In his best effort to not cry and speak at the same time, the boy mutters, " thank you".
"Thank you" the little girl copies, she hands Liane one of the piece of bread stick they tried to steal.
"I appreciate that, but you need it more than me," she says, patting the girl on her head. Liane leaves the market place and heads for the field outside the walls to search for medicinal mushrooms and herbs herself.
The busiest and most chaotic time of Tunukor is the afternoon, Ejun had left the hideout after Liane came back with the medicine. Hungry Ejun heads to the central market, along the way he begins to hear the name.
"Psan, our savior, he's come in peace and must accept him or the light will be dark and our fires will be cold!" A man in a long robe said as he stood on the tallest part of a fountain so everyone could hear and see him. "Psan, our savior, hes…"
He wasn't the first person of the day to claim Psan as a "savior", and he wasn't going to be the last either, but like every other, he quickly was taken down by the city's authorities. However his message must've been heard, a brawl began to break out between the authorities and the man's friends.
surrounding the market stands with a dome of thick ice or earth, the market protectors quickly shielded their bosses' products from being destroyed by the ruckus.
In the scuffle Ejun escapes by blasting himself up to the roofs, there he ate an apple he stole when everyone was not looking, he enjoys the show.
From behind him Eva joins in, sitting next to EJun, they share the apple.
"If Kuso was here, he'd finish the man and his entire team faster." Ejun says
"And more brutally" Eva adds.
"What's going to happen now that Garrett's out?" Ejun asks.
"I don't know, maybe we'll just abandon this plan and wait for our next opportunity."
"Maybe we should just quit entirely" Ejun replied "I don't get it, why is Kuso so obsessed with this guy? Why do we have to be the ones to kill Psan?"
"You know why, his reasons are the same as mine," Eva says. "But you'll never get it, you left your family, we lost ours."
"Don't you think you'll lose more if you fight Psan?"
"Ejun, I have nothing left to lose but you." Eva said as she kissed Ejun.
"Don't lose me, don't fight Psan, let's just leave Kuso to his own plans, everyone else would agree."
"I can't," Eva says, "I want to put an end to Psan as much as Kuso,"
"You're crazy, that's not true."
Eva looked at Ejun mad, "he killed my mother, butchered my brother, and he tortured my dad, right in front of me! You don't know how much I want this." Eva got up to leave.
Ejun grabs her arm, "I'm sorry I didn't mean-"
Eva jolts out by pushing herself with air.
Ejun screeches, "fuck!"
The silence of the hideout was intense, Kuso's sweat was in every corner of his body, as he tried to find another way to defeat Psan without Garrett's help.
Originally, their plan was to sneak and kill Psan by making tunnels to his tent when they lay siege, that way Psan cannot sense them approaching. However without Garret the plan would fail. The bond Kuso had over earth is not strong enough to swiftly and smoothly carry it out himself.
"Give it a rest" Liane says, "we can make more plans, it doesn't have to be this one"
"You don't get it, None of you do! The more people Psan consumes the stronger he gets! This is our only option and we have to make it work, make sure garret is ready by then."
"Kuso, I really don't think Garret will be okay in a month, let alone 3 days, he is seriously, really, really hurt."
"I don't care!" Kuso yells, "he's Garrett, he can take it."
"I'm not going to let that happen!" Liane replies.
"Put that out." Kuso says as he looks at her palm on fire.
"He's not going to help you with this, not this one. Think of something else or you can do this yourself"
"You guys can't say no to this, you owe me, you all owe, I saved you all,"
"Saved?" Liane says sarcastically.
"Yes saved," Kuso reassures, "I could have let you get captured by those people yesterday, But I didn't, you'd be a slave again if it wasn't for me."
Laine slaps Kuso, "fuck you, I'm out" Liane says as she leaves the hideout.
"sure you are, don't go drinking again, you might be captured this time," Kuso mockingly laughs and murmurs "bitch".