"Fuck!" The man cursed under his breath as he jumped over the clearing to the other roof.
It should have been a simple duel between fellow Guided. He should be on a plane home by now. Instead, he was running along the rooftops of a foreign city covered in injuries because the man he fought ended up unconscious.
"Get him!" A voice yelled out over the roaring thunder and heavy rain.
Using Mana to reinforce his legs, the man crouched to jump the next ravine. His concentration was broken just as he jumped due to a sharp pain in his arm. Cursing his misfortune, he ended up flying down towards an emergency staircase embedded into the side of the brick building.
Hitting it hard, he lost his grip and flew further down. He noticed a spot below he could catch and spun the water around him with his Mana, forming a clear rope to catch the next railing and allow him to slide down a little safer.
He landed with a crack and was sent tumbling into a dumpster. Though his head hit the metal with a bang, he ignored the ringing in his ear and pressed on.
The shouting above forced him to duck down one back alley after another. He was eventually forced to hide his injury to cross a street with some civilians before ducking down another alley.
Yet still, the sounds of the enemies rough pursuit could be heard along the shouting of angry and scared pedestrians. Further down the maze-like alleys did he run until the sounds were drowned out by the rain and traffic. Hoping he finally threw them off, he ducked down a small alley to search for a place go hide.
"Ack!" "Huh?!"
The two cried as they collided with each other. With the man falling back against the brick wall, a small figure was sent flying into the trash behind them.
Catching himself against the wall, he looked down to see a tiny child dressed in a coat to big for her struggling to get up. His fatherly instincts kicked in as worry drowned his previously fear filled mind. He wanted to rush and help her, but the sudden shock made his Mana unstable due to the accumulated damage.
"I-I'm sorry child." He grunted as he found his feet.
He noticed the child flinch, but that left his mind as the shouts got louder. Before he could take off, he felt a tiny hand grip his own.
Looking down, he noticed the hooded head of the child looking up at him. Though he couldn't see their eyes, he could sense their urgency as they pulled him along. Confused, he allowed the kid to pull him to the opposite wall. With a shove, he was forced to drag his wounded arm against the wall before being pulled into the small alley.
He wanted to retort, but a hush from the child made him purse his lips. He watched as they pulled fresh garbage bag from inside of their coat and pull it over his bleeding arm. With the end tied loosely just above the wound, the child dragged him further down the alley towards an abandoned building. After dragging him inside, the child pointed to a dust covered bathroom and pressed their finger to their lips.
Without a word, the child quickly left and closed the door. There was plenty the man wanted to say, but he was forced to duck as the voices of his pursuers echoed down the alley.
"Fuck, did he run into the street?" One man snarled, followed by the sound of brick being hit by flesh.
"Oi, kid. Did you see a guy running down here?" Another voice asked, clearly filled with disdain.
After a few seconds, a chuckle filled the air.
"The mute says down here."
"Wait, look at this blood. The looks he hit the wall as he rushed to the street."
"Fucking filthy-"
A yelp was heard over the sound of a crash in the alley. The sounds of someone hitting another could be heard before the other man called out.
"Leave it. Remember, no civy deaths. C'mon, be couldn't have gotten far."
"Don't let me see you again, wretch." The man spat before footsteps faded down the other alley to the street.
Relief filled the man as he slid down the wall. He thought the kid had given him away, but it seems getting shoved into the wall saved his life.
Did the kid plan this? The man thought as he gripped his wounded arm over the bag.
By now, his blood pooled at the bottom and tickled his finger tips. Sadly, he didn't have enough Mana to tend to his wounds. At most, he could patch himself up for the night. For now he would need to hide until the morning.
Suddenly, the sound of the door opening outside of the bathroom was heard. Bringing his hand up, he mustered up the last of his Mana for a desperate attack. Though, as soon as the child's head peeked in the doorway, he let out a sigh and dropped his arm.
"Thanks kid, I owe you." He said with a weak chuckle.
He noticed a fresh bruise growing on the kids cheek. His stomach lurched at the sight, but he was in no position to do much. He then saw the child pointing at his arm. Looking at the bag, he shook his head and gave a weary smile.
"Don't worry, I just need to rest and I'll be good as new." He tried a chuckle, but the cracked ribs from his duel made him groan.
Noticing his pain, the child limped over and grabbed his other hand. The child seemed desperate, so he followed their will and climbed up to his feet once more. The man was then slowly pulled into the center of the building, which looked like an abandoned hotel lobby.
He followed the child to a staircase, where he dragged himself up multiple flights until they reached the penthouse.
"Is this your home?" The man asked with a weary voice.
Nodding, the child pulled the door open to reveal their home. Within laid an open space with the walls covered from end to end with bookshelves. Each shelf was crammed end to end with old looking books. Along the floor was more books and lit candles. A few more rooms could be seen with a ravaged kitchen, a dirty bathroom and candle lit bedroom.
He was led to the large couch at the end of the landing, stumbling over books and empty cans and bottles. Finally reaching the couch, he sat with a huff and laid on his back.
He couldn't help but let out a pained chuckle as the child frantically ran around the room in search for a book. As they ran to the far shelf, a book mysteriously dropped down from above them onto the floor. He was confused how it seemed to be the book the child was looking for, but the anemic feeling washing over his head made him groan and lay his head down.
He listened to the scampering of tiny feet running back to him and realized that the child had been barefoot this whole time. He could only stare up at the ceiling now and image how his family would feel being saved by such a tiny child.
He imagined his wife's smile drowned out by her tears. His son's pestering about how his fight went, even his daughters anger at how things had turned out. Oh, how he wished he could see them again.
He almost passed out when a sudden pain forced his free hand to reach out at the danger. A yelp was heard where his hand grabbed, making him turn to look at the child. By now, they had taken the bag off and cut his sleeve away up to his shoulder with a sharp pair of scissors. It seemed they were following the instructions in the book from earlier to tend to his wounds.
"S-sorry, I wasn't ready." He sighed as he leaned back down on the couch.
He hadn't noticed that the child laid him so his wounded arm hung off the side. What's more, how dirty they were. Beneath the large, heavy tan leather coat was a single dirty shirt that hung low on their body. Though they were tanned, they looked as if they had not eaten in a long while.
What was surprising though, were those unwavering golden eyes that honed in on their task. It was difficult to tell whether they were a boy or girl due to the muck around their face, but those eyes seemed to shine through.
"Strange...that looks...like..." He felt like he recognized the shine in those eyes, but the encroaching darkness took hold before he could finish his thought.