Servitude: The Hydrangea Chapters

Chp 58: Arrival at an Empty Haven

That same morning:

It took some days of running, but he finally made it. There were a few times when he had to check the map in the Lodestar Chronicle to make sure he was going the right way. As well as he could, that is, given that he is not a navigator. Now that he sees the outpost in the distance, with its brightly painted dome roofs, it would seem silly if he actually did miss it.

It's dawn, so the people who should be living here are probably still asleep. As much as he'd hate to strut in like he owns the place, he was here to find Marlina. Maybe if he's lucky, she'll be wandering around.

As he walks along the outer wall to find an entrance, he cups his hands near his mouth. "Marlina! Hey, Marlina!"

He comes across a crop field, trenches of soil with dozens of small sprouts that have dried out and withered. But there is one area in particular, a large section with no sprouts and a slight indentation, like something big was planted here, then uprooted from the ground.

'This could have been her flower, but I can't tell for sure. Speaking of, I should plant my own to recover my petals from that climb. Later, though, Marlina comes first.'

Making his way around and finding the lake and gate entrance, he slowly walks through the courtyard. It's kind of a dump, really, with cracked sandstone tiles scattered or overturned, dried puddles of mud that flake when he scuffs his foot against them. A glint of something reflecting catches his eye; he approaches and sees a perfectly shaped human hand made of glass.

Squatting down and picking it up, he turns it in his hands to inspect the details. It is quite lifelike, capable of capturing every curve of the fingernails to the tiny grooves of the knuckles, which is quite impressive if this were part of a sculpture.

"Damn, the detail is immaculate; it would give Livana a run for her money."

Standing up while still gazing at the hand as he walks, he examines the palm and traces his fingers along the lines with fascination. His foot bumps into a raised tile, and he trips. The hand slips from his grasp and shatters into pieces; the man falls to the ground with an odd, hollow, metallic thud. Not seeming phased by the fall, he's more concerned about the hand.

'Shit. Well, I guess it was already broken... Nothing a good meal won't fix, I hope. I doubt there's much around here, but I've dealt with less.'

Getting back on his feet, he looks up at the main building as the morning sunlight begins to rise along the front. He cups his hands again.

"Hellooooooo! Marlina!?"

Nothing. Just the sound of the wind. A bit unsettling, actually.

"Where the hell is that girl?"

Granted, the continent is quite large, and it's hard for anyone to find just one person, even with their less limited traveling means. He wouldn't have gotten this far if he hadn't sneaked over the Wall. He woke up in the Colonies and was stuck there, not really needing to go into the desert until now.

Though he is hesitant to step inside, something is off here.

Cautiously, he enters. A thin layer of sand covers the floor, with some piled in small mounds against the pillars or corners of the walls, where the wind has gathered it. He finds a fire pit, but it has long been extinguished. His footsteps make an unusual sound against the stone as he explores. He discovers a tunnel and proceeds down through it.

The cave that forms is empty and slick with moisture. He's unable to detect the cold inside, and he finds an alcove with stone furniture—a couple of tables, an empty bed frame, how bizarre.

Following the rest of the cave, the floor is covered with a layer of water and neatly stacked metal crates. He reaches the end and goes up, noticing a line of light peeking around the edges of a floor panel. He pushes it up and climbs out, discovering a stable of sleds. Looking around, he crosses his arms in frustration and taps his foot against the stone, deep in thought.

'I swear, if Damineus already came around here and left me to go through all this worry and trouble...'

Even if he did, there wasn't much he could complain about. He's the best person to find her in the end.

About to move on to keep looking, there's a sound of chitters, and the man is startled, raising his hands and ready to fight. Then his gaze falls upon a gigantic, eyeless lizard with large, scaly fans around its head and some cloth wrapped around its neck.

"What in blazes is that?!" It's a monster!

Though it has no eyes and isn't leaping at him, its shifting ears and tense posture slink in caution and confusion. It edges a little closer, and the man steps back.

"Don't you come any closer! I'll punch you right in the nose!"

The voice doesn't sound right, but the metal on stone does. As the lizard inches closer, it extends its tongue to identify him, and he grabs the tongue firmly.

This was a mistake.

Immediately, the monster emits an ear-piercing screech. For the man, it is indeed loud, but a screech of such a nature that would debilitate humans doesn't affect someone without eardrums.

With a shift and whip of its head, more of its tongue extends, the barbed parts looping over the man and pulling him tight and trapping him. It then swings the man around, slamming him into the nearest wall and cracking the stone. The lizard then pulls back its tongue, expecting to taste blood on the barbs, but finds nothing. But at this moment, it doesn't want to stay and find out why, so it seizes the chance and flees. Scurrying back into the den it came from, it leaps up to the hole at the top of the ceiling, climbs out, and takes off into the desert.

The man quickly got back on his feet despite the slam, about to chase it into the den when he saw it crawl out to flee. "Good! You'd better run, you oversized gecko!" Looking around to see if there is more, he spots plenty of bones scattered all around, his green eyes widening.

'Shit, maybe that monster wiped out everyone here... Maybe Marlina ran away...'

If that's the case, it just takes him back to square one, which he's sure she wouldn't have been eaten. He imagines they don't taste good, even to a starving monster. Sitting on the rocks in the center of the den, he rests his arms on his legs with his hands hanging at his knees, his head tilted back as he closes his eyes to think.

"If she ran... which way would she have gone?"

Standing up, he takes a moment to find the gate, not seeing any footprints besides his own, but the wind might have blown any old ones away.

"If she goes towards the Colonies, she'll just be stopped at the Wall, and going to the other side would just drive her out, or worse..."

If she headed toward Urush, she might need some help. Those over there are said to be quite hostile towards Colonials, from what he's heard. At least she can double back if she's turned away at the Wall, and he can run into her if he has to backtrack. He knows he used a good amount of his petals to get past the Wall, and he'll need as many as he can if he has to defend Marlina from Urushians. Between here and the desert, this may be the only place he can plant his seed to recover, then he can dash after her. Hopefully, he isn't kept for too long, and Marlina doesn't get too far ahead of him.

His hand lifts to rub the back of his neck. It doesn't really do anything to help him; it's just an old habit. His head slacks back, and he lets out a groan. "Geez, how did Damineus manage this all of the other times?"

Regardless, standing around and complaining doesn't bring him any closer to Marlina. His petals shifting, he pulls a walnut-sized seed from a secure spot inside the back of his neck.