Worlds Apart

Chapter 36

C O L L A P S E

Oct. 28 2020 09:24 OLT

Soto Plaza, Lohs Llyo, Province of Olli

Sneaking into the city was easier than expected with Tuesday being their major market day. They crossed the carved arches into the packed yellow sandstone and adobe brick alleys. The windows in even rows on the walls were lined with decorated wooden shutters and blocked by thick curtains to keep the sand and heat out. Riona hadn't visited the city often, especially the suburbs. All the events she'd accompanied her parents for as prominent members of their families were held in the affluent neighbourhoods of central Lohs Llyo.

The market was spread along the streets at the edge of the city. Crowds ebbed and flowed through asymmetrical archways that leaned against walls. People from the surrounding towns would come and go today, so all they had to do was pull their scarves up to blend in. The sun was already beating down on their backs but the air hadn't heated up since winter was approaching. After sunset, the crowds would dwindle quickly as the temperature plummeted.

Riona could barely refrain from itching her Markings, covered under an uncomfortable number of layers of the concealer she'd pocketed from her visit to the Yurei Gate last month. They weaved through without so much as a glance at the stalls—which held a mélange of clothes, flowers, trinkets, and street food—and headed deeper into the heart of the market until the walls narrowed in, the ocean of heat and bodies coalescing into dense streams. The sun could no longer reach the flattened dirt pathways, fabric and metal sheets propped across the alleys to block it. The permanent shops were nestled here, selling cybernetics and handmade stained-glass ornaments, along with Lohs' country-wide famous tzikros restaurants. Riona swore she spotted a gun shop around the corner but Naia yanked her through the crowd before they got separated.

Guardians were patrolling the area and calling the residents uncooperative was a severe understatement. Some of them yelled through the throng, swearing them out; others glared; a woman in a breezy, bright emerald scarf tugged her child out of the way, unwilling to even look at them. One brazen onlooker left the side of an antique clock shop, stalking out but stumbling a little as if he had been day-drinking, cried out, and promptly spit on the Guardian's face. The man stiffened before responding dispassionately, words lost in the din. The chatter snuffed out the moment another Guardian snapped the drunkard's arms behind his back, handcuffing and marching him along in front of her.

The silence was tense and Riona wanted to run. She pulled her hood even lower, praying that none of her Markings were visible. The Guardian who had been spit on wiped his face, disgruntled, then eyed the crowd that had come to a complete standstill.

"Anyone else have something to say?" he growled, grey eyes stormy and freezing anyone in their spot.

"Fuckin' spineless bastards is what you are," the drunk man shouted. "Hope 'em Bullets you're looking for cut your fuckin' heads off—"

The man tumbled to the ground, limp. The female Guardian had her weapon raised, having knocked him out with the non-lethal end.

Apparently, this was the wrong response.

A rough female voice cut through the silence: "Get out of our city!"

Another followed: "—done nothing but ruin us—!"

Then another: "—deserved what happened at the border!"

And then another and another until the marketplace was alive with their clamouring, metallic clangs and dull thuds added to the cacophony, and then the crowd surged forward and the Guardian reached for his gun.