The Arcadian Eclipse

Episode 3

Minutes passed and I felt the boy hugging my leg. His light touch reignited my brain. I had been in a trance and forgotten where I was or what I had done. I let go of the man and collapsed. I was exhausted, and thirsty, this had taken everything out of me.

The young boy knelt by me and said, "Do you love me, sir?"

What a strange question? But he was a young boy and perhaps he needed reassurance.

"Yes, I love you," it felt strangely natural to say it after what had transpired.

"I love you too," he said as he threw his arms around me and kissed me on the cheek.

The boy then went over the dead, thirsty man and unbuttoned his shirt. He took it off, it was stained in blood in some places, but not badly. He handed me the shirt and I absent-mindedly stared at it while he pointed to the superficial wound on my right thigh.

"Oh, yes, thanks," I said as I tore it in two and tied the cleaner part around my arm.

"What's your name kid?"

"Nym, and yours, sir?"

"Ren, call me Ren please – not sir."

"Yes, sir."

He immediately realized his mistake and said, "Sorry, Ren."

I said nothing to that, but got to my feet, tousled his hair, and said, "Let's go."

I stuffed the man into the dumpster toward the end of the alley and covered him with a dusting of trash. This would buy me a day to think about what to do next.

I was worried about Street Keepers, but not for the next twenty-four hours, they didn't dump trash until tomorrow night.

I grabbed the boy's hand and we were about to exit the alley to be deposited into the street. At the exit of the alley, at the very end, a man walked to block our way. His thick black wand with a heavy ball on the end, a ball that had crushed skulls, was pointed right at me.

He was smirking.

It was a Street Keeper.

And there was nowhere to run.

The Street Keeper walked up to us, he knew he didn't need to rush. He had already captured us in his web. My stomach dropped. As he stood in our way out of the alley, I l jerked my head back involuntarily. I thought about running backward. But I knew that he would bash my head in with that stick if I tried and the boy couldn't keep up anyway.

He caught my attention by elevating his voice. I swiveled my head to stare into his cold eyes. "So you were the one who stole the water." It wasn't a question.

He looked into my pupils, half closing his eyes with a grin starting to materialize from the corner of his right lip.

"Sir, I don't know what you're talking about or what you want."

"What I want, huh?"

He slapped the heavy black ball on the end of his wand into his open palm. It made a thunk sound. I could imagine it hitting the flesh of my head very soon. I looked at the boy.

How can I keep him safe?

But he wanted admitted guilt before the beating. "There was a man and a boy who stole water. He looked at the shaking boy who grabbed my arm.

He continued, "Two people stole water from an old lady's stand not far from here. A boy and an older boy." He grimaced at me.

"And I see you coming out of that alley." He thrust his wand forward toward the alley. I had to quickly move my head to the left to avoid it.

He laughed. "And I heard scuffling. What were you doing in that alley if not drinking water?"

He was tensing his biceps, I could see through his black, long-sleeved shirt.

I thought, my mind fumbled for lies that didn't materialize.

The boy thought more quickly and pulled something out of his pocket. A shiny golden ticket, the size of an index card. It was embossed with blue letters.

Everybody knew what that ticket was. It was a ticket to Arcadia. To water and a better life. The sight made the Street Keeper put down his baton. He jerked the ticket out of the boy's hand. The heavy paper it was made of prevented it from being ripped.

He stared intently at the ticket. "Arcadia." He spat out the words out.

The boy looked at the man's ring as he held the ticket.

A smart boy.

The boy said, "Sir, I can take someone with me – I could take you because I'm just a kid, they'll let me – if you just let my cousin go."

The Street Keeper seemed to consider this for an entire minute. Then he closed his eyes as he held the ticket out for the boy to take it, shaking his head.

"I have a wife and kids." He said as he lowered his voice.

"Why would we steal water sir, when we have that?" My mind started to turn again as I pointed at the ticket the Nym held.

I was silent.

"Hm. That makes sense."

He thought again, "But what was the noise in the alley? What was that from? What were you doing wrong?"

"I was just walking Nym home because he had that." I pointed at the ticket again. He won the ticket and I want to get him home safely. Someone saw it when he took it out to look at it – I tried to tell him not to look at it." I glanced down and slightly shook my head at Nym."

"Someone tried to attack you?"

"Yes, sir," I said

He smiled and gripped his baton tightly.

I shivered.

"Where is he now, how old was he?"

Nym said, "He ran away – down the other side of the alley?"

I said, "About forty."

"How did you fend him off?" He looked into my eyes. "You're just a scrawny kid."

I shrugged. "I've been in a few scuffles."

He gave a deep-throated laugh. "Well you wouldn't beat me – he must have been weak. If I were you, I'd go straight home with that ticket."

We both said, "Yes, sir."

He stepped aside.