The Butterfly Effect [DISCONTINUED]

Chapter 2.03 ー Walking Corpse

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Hɪʙɪᴋɪ

You may have heard it already, but I'll restate it for the poor idiots who didn't say it correctly. If Anzen Rozu was a pie, I owned an entire slice. The city wasn't separated that way, likely because of me. As Emperor, I practically had a V.I.P pass to the city, so you'd assume things would be fine and dandy for me. Well, that wasn't and isn't the case.

No one has ever seen the Emperor of the Shadou's face, my face. I'm only recognizable by voice, and the silhouette of my horns. My alias is Akki Shadou, but that isn't my real name either.

Now, you might argue that this could be enough for me to get some sort of special privileges in such an advanced city. I did not, and haven't ever taken advantage of my position in that city, in fear of being whisked away 'for my protection' like Tomoe.

So, like my many other irregularities that make me stand out from humans, I cast a facade over my horns. Eyes and teeth were too personal to touch, and I could easily refrain from speaking. Yeah, I definitely could definitely stay quiet, I told myself. I didn't feel like myself anyway. No horns, no... abnormalities, and no cloak. Damn, I missed that thing.

Getting back to my narrative, as soon as I had seen Sora bolt away, I told Haruka and Daichi to find Kotone. Those useless twins had been in contact with Kaosu for much longer then us, so I was positive that keeping them around would either kill them both or act as bait for Kaosu. It'd been interesting to find the result.

Then, I started my stroll through the city. Sora would be fine as long as she stayed in the center, and I had her in the palm of my hand. I'm sure I don't need to explain her position as a Walking Corpse.

If I had payed enough attention to Kaosu during the brief instance where we had first met, I could infer that she'd be gathering information before heading to the top, the leaders of the city who might be susceptible to her influence. Not to mention the preexisting flamboyance. Considering the amount of time to have passed, she might have been at an daytime pub.

"It would be fun to see her face off with Tomoe," I mumbled to myself.

Hands in my pockets, I started down a dim backstreet. The glamour of the city failed to catch my attention, and I was better at fading into the shadows anyway. It was my specialty, after all. I saw the spotlight of sun an the end, and the passing of a carriage, pulled by a bear. Small world.

I passed by dumpsters and littered trash, with even a prosthetic hand among the rubbish. I would have kept walking, and I should have kept walking, if it weren't for a quiet passerby.

It wasn't long before smoldering, chatoyant eyes were gazing up at me. Black satin-soft fur, and bristle whiskers.
A cat mewed at me, and I stopped in my tracks, and stood on one knee.

"Hello," I mumbled to it. It sulked against my thigh.

I had a soft spot for such beasts, they were much better then tamed wolves or shrunken bears. I scratched under it's chin, and fought the urge to grin.

I spent a whole five minutes coddling the feline, before rising and wiping my hands on my pants.

One second passed, and I heard the sound of heels parading behind me too late. If the following events seem rushed, trust me, they were.

I felt a piercing pain under my arm. I turned in time to see Kaosu's dastardly grin, and hear her clicking heels echo in the street.

She was wearing a short blue dress that barely went past her thighs, with an apron and neatly folded sleeves... one of the waitresses' uniforms at the pub I mentioned; one step ahead. I would have frowned at this if I hadn't been already.