Heartbeats Amid Fire

3 - Settling

Alysa pov:

"Thank you for showing me around today, Arran," I said as we walked back slowly to the inn. It was late evening and the sky had turned orange, and I was looking forward to turning in for the night after a rather long day.

I had not done any work but meeting and greeting the townspeople had been tiring enough. I had had no rest besides the half an hour I spent at Ms. Sophia's house for lunch, but most of the time there had been spent in chatter with her and her two sons who were boisterous ten and twelve year old boys. Nonetheless, the tour around town had familiarized me with many things I would need to know about for my stay here and meeting the kind residents had been rewarding.

"You don't have to thank me for that," Arran replied with a laugh. "I'm happy to help. Speaking of which, don't hesitate to ask me for any help you need with settling in, alright?"

"Yes, thank you," I said with a nod. I was grateful that the people were unhesitant to offer help but I was certain that I would only find it awkward to ask them for anything unnecessarily, and I didn't want to be a burden.

We walked in silence for a few minutes before I heard some commotion up ahead. We didn't stop walking despite seeing a man collapsed on the ground and shielding himself from being abused by one of the townspeople I had not been introduced to.

"You piece of trash! Why are you always so clumsy?! Can't you do anything right?!" the elderly man yelled whilst hitting the man on the ground with a thick stick and I noticed a few fruit fallen on the ground beside the latter who held a basket with the same fruits in it.

We did come to a stop when we were about ten feet away and I clenched my fists in discomfort as the abuse continued. Arran said and did nothing, and I had a hunch about the reason for it.

"Arran, who is that and what's going on?" I asked without taking my eyes off the two of them.

"That's Mr. Waldo, one of the residents who works on the fields, and that his slave, Kian. Kian is a Zero – I'm sure you notice the slave collar and the brand he has on the back of his hands," Arran answered, his voice soft. It was mildly surprising to see that he was nearly as uncomfortable as me as he watched Mr. Waldo hit the Zero hard enough to leave painful red marks on his exposed arms and shoulders.

"I noticed that. But I'm surprised I haven't seen any Zeros in the town until now."

It was odd that I had not seen a single Zero during our entire tour despite having seen two from my house balcony this morning. I assumed that they all worked on the fields but surely there had to be a few helping out the residents in their homes or running errands through the town.

"We don't have many Zeros here," said Arran. "Most of the Zeros that do reside here work in the fields under the supervision of the townsfolk but a few others help around in the houses and shops. The townspeople don't like them lingering around unless they're actually doing any work so they remain in their rooms unless called upon or unless they're helping."

For a moment, I wondered if I should express the unhappiness I felt about the way Zeros were treated. I decided against it though in fear that any support I showed the Zeros would have me made an outcast. With no money or status in this town, I had to be careful of what I did and said so I didn't make any enemies.

"So, they're kept out of sight because no one likes the thought of having to see them for extended periods of time?" I clarified.

"Yeah...I mean, who would want to be around Zeros, right?" he mumbled with a laugh though his words sounded halfhearted somehow.

"I guess," I responded, also halfhearted.

"Well, you shouldn't bother with the Zeros either. I'm sure you wouldn't want to in the first place and keeping away from them will keep you away from dealing with unnecessary scrutiny from the townspeople."