the garden within the wasteland

Pedro, 1

a prince was born along with a peasant on the same day, at the same hour, an hour that led them both to be cursed—a curse of body, a curse hate.

"Every day, those four meet; they wonder the streets talking of mundane stuff, then they pick the same tavern."
the women in the purple clothing and owl mask spoke before nodding her head slightly, awaiting a response. 
The study remained silent, only the sound of rustling plants that decorated the book shelves, tables and chairs; the sight of flowers and all the various plants were overwhelming, leaving no room for any one but the princess, who had her back turned to the purple women, watching endlessly into the window that over saw the entire kingdom
"Lunaus, why do you tell me this? I have no business with the commoners."
"It was your father, his majesty King Omega, who ordered me to, but I wished to gain your approval to carry it on."
princess Candance sighed as she rose to her feet, turning around to face Lunaus. Her blue eyes had a fixed gaze that pierced the women's mask
"what threat do they pose?"
She asked bluntly without a pause
"theft"
"Aren't you overqualified?"
"Theft of ingredients and materials in high quantities which could be used to make weaponry, rumors spoken by the commoners, since the condition of Saint Uriel, the saint family is losing their strength."
"And those four are related?"
"The four are orphans; they have a motive, and two of them have gained the worry of the nobles before hand."
"Pedro and William? the inventors of the hand cannon?"
lunaus nods her head
"very well, lunaus, you may, but follow my condition; do not kill them, blood shed can be avoided. if you find cause for harm, arrest them."
"I will not fail you, saint Candance."
saint Candance's glare began to melt, melting and forming into a gentle smile, Her eyes rested as she  walked towards the door
"walk with me, Lunaus; we haven't talked in ages."
Lunaus quickly followed behind her as they began to roam the hallways of the palace. The sight of the hallway was no different from Candance's study: an overwhelming gold that had been injected into everything, golden-laced walls, decorations, and glamour. Not one spot of the castle had been left empty
"The past month had been such a disaster, hasn't it?" lunaus said her voice was more relaxed and friendly now 
"ever since saint Uriel failed the test, endless panic, sorry for putting so much work on you as well, Lunaus," Candance's voice reeled back as she rubbed the back of her head, laughing slightly
"don't fret it! I agreed to be your lady in waiting after all."
"All this work, and I'm only an heir; I do not count down the days till dad wants to move on."
"Can't the throne just go to Gabriel? the two of you were born on the same day."
"Yes, yes but he was born 7 hours later so technically the crown is my burden."
saint Candance came to a stop in her stroll, seeing the figure of a decorated man in pure golden armor, blue eyes identical to Candance's short black hair and a massive golden and blue hammer on his back
"Michael?" Candance shook her head, failing to hide her surprise
"SISTER, I CAN EXPLAIN."
"You are supposed to be overseeing the expansion; you have the blue prints as well."
"The building crew never got the supplies."
Lunas's head spiked up as she stepped forward by passing Candance
"if I may saint Michael, what was the material?"
"mostly metal and other stuff I didn't recognize."
lunaus looked back at Candance and they both nodded
"why does it matter?"
 Lunaus excused her self and walked off
Candance did the same, bidding Michael luck as she left

.

the streets hummed with that constant buzz of conversation the one so varied in tones and topics yet merged into one single distraction for the young man who's ears where more sensitive than most, he slithered in between the crowds of people he carried a brown leather messenger bag in his hands hugging the way a miner would carry gold out of a mine, as he approached the exit of the market place he shifted his body over to the wall of a shop sticking to it closely walking till he found the back door, he leaned on the wall using to free his left hand to knock on the door. 
a few moments pass and as the man went to knock again, a familiar voice called out
"password?" 
"for fame, for money, for metal," the man responded, his voice hushed 
"your late Pedro, it's him, isn't it?"
the women behind the door chuckles slightly
"place it on the left this time."
Pedro wriggled around before placing the bag on a rose flower to his left, next to the red rose where 2 tulips as well perfectly spaced a couple inches apart,  Pedro planted his feet at each tulip before reaching out his left hand to the door handle, grabbing it from the bottom and turning it upwards, the rusty iron handle struggles for a second before giving way for the mechanism, the patch of grass Pedro was standing on, along side the bag disappeared into the ground, falling swiftly into a iron vent, un fazed by the sudden fall he simply raised his left arm catching onto a circle hook that swung towards him, carried over by a roof-mounted conveyor carrying over mostly hooks one of them carrying his bag, the smell of smoke instantly began to over fill his senses as well as the buzzing, the chants of the machines, their engines and their work, most of it were simple stationary equipment which could only produce, as pedro was dragged to a stand that over saw a more simple room a simple coffee table with books maps scattered on it, books of history of urban legends and of science all the books where leather kept in supreme quality yet most of them are used as stands for what ever Knick-naks or any drinks they saw fit, yet one was left un touched, away from the others and it stood out, a smaller book with an illustration, on it was a women in golden armor and  hair the shade of darkness that curled all the way to shoulders, yet some were left dangling downward in a straight line, she carried a halberd made of gold and bronze, and stood with her back turned to the observer, her hands where spread out, the halberd battered and broken being only different from a stick by it's design, she was preparing for death as the beast stared down on her.
a massive boar with 4 tusks, 2 on the side of it's head and 2 sticking out of  it's mouth; it seemed several times larger than the women the title read
"the first queen mesh, and the Enkidu"
"pedro! What took so long?"
William, who was rested on the coach, leaning into it, rested on the fist from his arm.
He always had this permanent smile on his face; it came as naturally to him as breathing. 
"You try robbing a royal carriage by your self willy."
William stood up, his eyes opening up
"wasn't Duncan supposed to go with you?" 
Pedro sighed as he fell on the chair opposite to Duncan, sinking into it, his arms and legs spread out 
"He just disappeared, finding some girl like always, leaving me to do all the work."
"typical"
William chuckled 
pedro began to lean forward in his seat, crossing his legs and resting his head on his fist, forcing a smile
"Oh yeah, Pedro, we're meeting a new client today."
"and why didn't I know about this before?"
"not my decision, Kassandra's, and besides, the new client is stacked."
William stood up, spreading his arms as he continued
"stacked enough for us to not need to work another day, surrounded by all these machines."
"that would be a shame really; what a waste of machinery."
William looked back at Pedro, dumbfounded, before shaking his head
"you've been obsessed with metal ever since we met at the orphanage; I don't get it."
pedro stood up as he began to spread his arms
"not just metal, machines their gears, their sound and the smell—it all brings me such peace."
a knock interrupted Pedro's energetic rant
the door slowly opened as the man behind it entered, he always stood out as the brightest between them, his skin was brighter, his hair a bright red with freckles, he was dressed in a 3-piece suit with a bow tie, he walked with a whimsy and certain glee to his steps as he stepped in; his eyes were closed with a massive smile on his face carrying a rose
"Duncan," William cried out, breaking Duncan out of his happy spell
he looked back at William; his face had been sunk downwards, and his smile turned into a frown equally as big
"what do you want?"
"Aren't you supposed to go with Pedro today?"
"destiny decided other wise, for I caught the glimpse of the love of my life."
"you said the same last week, Duncan."
"and besides Willy."
Duncan spoke as he continued to walk in, gently placing the flower among a shining glass vase filled with other dead or withered roses
"Pedro and I robbed that Michael's caravan last week; he could handle something small like today's mission."
Duncan paused as he leaned forward, his hands placed near his hip, in a fist as he spoke in a panic
"why!? has pedro been captured!? OH WHAT HAS MY FOOLISHNESS DONE?"
duncan grabbed William by the shoulders, lowering his head and shaking william
"WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO HIM!? THOSES ROYAL TYRAN-"
"I'm right here, Duncan."
Pedro said weakly as he waved his left hand slightly
"he was in front of you the entire time; were you that blinded by love?"
Duncan let go of William's shoulders as the both of them laughed, Pedro following suite a couple seconds later
Duncan and William both sat down on the coach, Pedro, returning to his chair shortly after
"Why didn't you come from the trap door?" pedro questioned
"Kassy's busy with the new client; we might even meet her in a short moment. Kassy looked happy talking to her."
"It's because she's staked."
william replied, a smile on his face
"for money, huh?"
"what else is worth our time!?"
William exclaimed
the 3 of them remained silent aside from the simple chatter between friends.
the sounds of the machines filled the ambiance with the ever lasting comforting sounds: the push the pull, the burn the tear It was a controlled rhythm that Pedro has designed him himself, His eyes began to zoom into the distance as his mind had begun to go: the push the pull,  the burn the tear, the push the burn the tear, the tears, the snap, the pull the blood, the push the pull, the burn the tear, the push the push the blade, the push the knock.

a loud knock on the door stopped all thoughts inside pedro's head as his head snapped to the door
"the client will be here shortly," Kassandra warned from behind the door 
Pedro nodded to himself as he scanned the rest of the area again, looking towards the clock. It's been an hour
"alright, just let me do all the talking Last time we left a client to Duncan, we lost money."
duncan silently protested but returned to how he was seated before, his legs crossed, his arms resting at the head of a couch 
pedro nodded as his eye glanced towards duncan before leaning back into his chair, crossing his legs
William stood up as began to walk towards the door, slightly confident in his step as began to stretch and move around his left hand, preparing for a handshake. The door began to open
revealing a woman standing behind the door, in a long, rich purple coat, and from her shirt and shoes being as black as coal, her arms were hidden behind the coat she wore as she slowly began to walk forward. She extended his left arm forward to shake William's hand; even her hand was covered in a black glove, and her face was hidden in a golden columbina mask.
"Welcome! it's nice to meet you," William asked as he firmly shook her hand before leading her to the main area
"Let's skip the witty banter; let's get to business, shall we?"
William chuckled as he rubbed his chin
"I like your style; let me introduce you to your future colleagues first, at least."
"Oh right, where are my manners? I am Marama." the women looked around, observing the three and the room
"oh yeah. Sorry for the mess; we're usually like this, I'm William, the one in the suit is Duncan, and the awkward one is Pedro."
her eyes dragged slowly through each one and landed on pedro
pedro slightly waved
"your the pals that stole from the building crew, right? Im looking for, let's say,... enough metal to supply a revolt."
her eyes dragged back to William as her hands returned to behind her coat
"yep! pedro did it himself; without him, he wouldn't be able to even melt this metal."
"just him?" she questioned
"im just an extra hand; william is the salesman; the rest is him," Duncan scoffed
"so many questions, huh, marama?" William began to take a step back to the table in the middle of the room, reaching under the books for a small blade
"I have spent enough time here," lunaus scoffed as her eyes jolted towards pedro like a wild animal sighting prey
her hands exploded out from under her coat, a pair of golden-engraved knives in each hand
"Pedro, you are here by request of the royal court, on the accounts of 21 offences to the crown from order of the king."
William pulled out the knife from under the books as duncan stood up, taking off his suit jacket
the women threw her first dagger at an incredible speed before pedro's mind can even register what to do. The knife pierced his wrist on the hand he was carrying the blade with, and her next knife flew past duncan's ear, implanting into the wall a warning shot
"I will take pedro for integration; if you do not resist, I will not take all of you."
 Duncan stepped back, as did William, both terrified
Pedro began to stand up, raising his arms in surrender
she grabbed him by the wrist as she began walk out
"just for selling metal?" asked pedro as he dragged his feet behind him, giving up on resisting 
"theft and illegal distribution"
"How will William get his money now?"
lunaus stopped she looked back confused
"that's what your worried about?"
pedro nodded his head, looking back, seeing Duncan trying to treat William's wound
lunaus counited on her path before raising her hand next to her mouth
"SOL! I got the target; break the shop in here."
"no need to yell, dear."
as Lunarius began to ascend the stairs, a figure walked in after her
a massive hulking man, covered from head to toe in metal and bronze, a mace in his left hand that dragged behind him on the floor, burning and cracking the wooden floor, filling the room with smoke as he marched each one of his steps, shaking the entire room. His body alone fully blocked the view of the door but above the stairs, kassandra was seen at the top of the stairs laying down under her desk
the man growled as he stepped closer The design of his armor was shown more clearly, that of stars of the pattern of Sagittarius The pattern of Orion and other constellations were all across his armor, even some of his mace that were barely seen, The mace was a golden orange orb that was all that seen from the smoke yet it's presences was felt in the sheer heat that invaded the room, drying up the entire room In an instance, his head, similar to Lunaus, had been covered by a mask The mask of a lion made of bronze and Aerogel near the eyes and ears, His hair was clearly seen from behind his mask. 
he looked behind him, seeing the entrance from the trap door, raising his mace and slamming it at the wall, lighting it on fire and causing anything bolted on the roof to fall down
William and Duncan quickly began to step away, running out
"running out of here is another offence, sons of no one."
the man's voice was deep; it echoed louder than the ear-deafening sounds of pedro's symphony falling apart and blazing into flames
he began to march slowly towards the desk
"is there only on factory correct?"
Duncan quickly began to plead yes
"should have thought so; this place reeks of dust"
he began to walk towards the desk, viewing all the books
he picked up one of them
"saint mesh and the Enkidu? a children's tale? this belonged to who?" questioned the lion 
"P-pedro, it was the only thing his parents left behind."
"before they left him behind?"
sol scoffed as he increased the pressure of his grip on the book, burning it to pieces and then raising his mace, slamming the rest of the table
the entire facility now was burning
"your free to go, Gather one more criminal offense, and it's the death penalty."
Duncan and William hurried up the stairs, leaving with Kassandra disappearing into the stairs. Their panic remained even after they left; it stayed with the smoke
sol looked downward as the fire surrounded him
"those young men, what a waste of talent"
he began to walk away, returning his mace to the leather sheath on his back The mace's fire began to disappear as he followed behind Lunaus.
he spotted lunaus heading into the wagon they came from
"How's the prisoner?" sol questioned as lunaus was entering; with Pedro already in his hands tied, there was concern in sol's voice
"He's not much of a threat and very cooperative; he keeps complaining about his left eye itching."
"you think it's a disease?
"doubt it, want to join the wagon?"
"I feel like walking more."
"then I'll see you back in the palace; take care!"
sol bid his good-bye as he began to walk away
pedro sat awkwardly inside the rich brown wagon His eyes scanned; he saw only Lunaus. It was impossible to see how she was sitting; she appeared as just a blob of darkness and purple pops 
he didn't know how to sit; his left eye began to itch