Chasing Dreams (Discontinued)

Chapter 247: Scarlet City (3)

The moonlight illuminated the sky with little obstruction. Ren was grateful for that. Since there were few clouds in the sky, he could rely on the moonlight and his senses to locate the remaining basilisks in Scarlet City.

Of course, danger came in the night. From what he remembered, the heroes who patrolled at night were stronger than the ones during the day.

Remember Ren, crime never sleeps. Heroes who are given permission to kill defend the streets against criminals who don't pull their shots.

Ren wasn't much of a scholar. He didn't pay attention in school and usually slept through class or ditched them entirely. Fortunately, Ren was glad he paid attention to everything Erica had to say, even if it seemed meaningless at the time.

Ren twisted his body in the air disengaging his fire jets. Dark blue wings sprouted from his back, mimicking the shade of the sky. Ren was thankful that his wings matched his hair. If he was born with golden wings like Michael's, he wouldn't be able to meld with the night to remain out of sight.

Thank god that I was born a phoenix. Ren activated his phoenix eyes. He abandoned his red irises and exchanged them for gold ones. By taking advantage of his enhanced vision, Ren can peer into the depth of night, taking notice of what normally couldn't be seen.

Ren picked up on movement. He saw a figure rushing across the street, ducking, weaving, and looking in all directions like a frantic meerkat. Ren swooped down and grabbed the figure by his talons, and lifted him up to see him in the light.

Ren noticed the figure was a young boy no older than 13. The boy screamed, and his volume startled Ren, causing him to drop him.

"Oh, for the love of God, I don't want to die!" The boy screamed. Ren, immediately realizing the severity of his mistake, rushed down and caught him.

"Wait. Wait! I know you you're that kid from a while back!" Ren put the boy down, dusting him off. He felt bad for dropping him.

"My name isn't kid, it's Benny." Benny smacked Ren's hand away and cleaned himself off. He pulled a comb out of his pocket and combed the dirt and feathers out of his hair.

"Sorry about that I'm not good with names. I'm glad to see you again. I heard you got caught up in all this turmoil but I'm glad to see you made it out alive." Ren smiled.

Benny glanced at Ren and looked down. He then looked at Ren again and squinted.

"Wait a second. Blue hair, well partially blue. Glowing yellow eyes and wings? Ren is that you?" Benny looked stunned. "Wow you look like a complete delinquent. What happened to you? Don't tell me Liv convinced you to let her do your hair?"

Ren pulled on his bangs and ran his fingers through his hair. He personally liked how his hair looked. It reminded him of Natsumi and Chinatsu, but he could see how it'd be intimidating for the average person.

"No, my hair is naturally like this." Ren chuckled.

"Okay..." Benny didn't seem to believe him. "You also got taller. Way taller. Last time I saw you you were barely taller than Olivia. You've grown almost a foot since then, what the heck happened? Don't tell me you're on drugs?"

Ren started scratching his head. Why did everyone assume he was on drugs? First, Tariq was offering him weed, and now Benny is accusing him of being on some sort of growth steroid.

"No, I'm not on drugs," Ren said with an expressionless face.

"Good. I don't think I'd associate with you if you were. I always liked you to It'd be a damn shame otherwise." Benny said softly. He then gave Ren a thin smile and hugged him. He nuzzled his face into Ren's stomach and stayed there for a minute. "I'm glad you're okay."