Run Away With Me

Chapter 38: Linking.

I walk through the crowd, hands in my pocket and consciousness alert. There are several voices exchanging messages in my head, and I try my best not to get distracted by them. I roll my knuckles inside my pocket and grab a piece of paper, holding it tight.

Like a rat that scurries past feet and shimmies through small cracks, I weave my way through the crowd, losing myself and the people that are following me. I follow the map I've memorized, turning a left into another main street and continuing straight until I reach the store.

I memorize every detail of the confectionary shop, trying to see if there's an opening I can slip through, but finding none after walking by it, I continue on. I twist through the waves of people again, taking two drops of the Scent Eraser and ducking behind a dumpster.

I wait awhile, ten minutes. I wait for them to move on, but considering the dexterity of the WB, I find it impossible to completely lose them, and I can't afford leading them to a rogue buddy.

I feel my phone in my pocket, but resist using it, knowing that they have my specific use of communication pinned down. It was a hard habit to put down, using my phone I mean, and it has been two weeks since it has been turned on.

The WB was more prepared than any of us had expected. Their connections to the world of technology shocked us, something we were planning to use to aid our plan, but we found a way to compensate.

I close my eyes and focus hard, pulling up the contact lists that connects me to important people. I scroll past different names, all of which are conversing with each other. I focus harder and find his contact, clicking on it before I lose my concentration.

Nao, I call, trying to tone down the other voices whispering in my head. Trying to be focused on the real world and maintaining connections through an ability I found I have three weeks ago is exhausting and torturing. It's like I have thousands of whispering voices in my head, while I only have ten, and the scratch of throats in my head is an annoying buzz.

I want to turn it off, but that would mean losing the only way of communication between rogues who have large influences and thus helping with the current dilemma we are having.

Everything alright? I hear him. I try to tone down the other voices, but I can never lower their volume, I wonder if I even can.

Uhum, I found Viktoria's shop, but I don't know how to approach her, I feel them on me.

Are you calm?

Surprisingly...

Good, then you shouldn't have any problem. I assume you've drank the Scent Eraser, switch hats or something and enter the place. I'll talk to you later.

I nod to myself and open my eyes again, somewhat relieved that the bustling outside overpowers the ones on the inside.

I stand up and reach into my pocket, digging deeper until I hit something hard. I switch the bright orange hat with a brown one and enter the crowd again, this time invisible. With my hands in my coat and my back hunched I cross the road and open the door to the store, noticing the bundle of people around.

I let my eyes wonder the place, in search of this Viktoria. I don't know who she is, but apparently, according to Emmyl, she'll be a useful comrade to have when times get awry, and so I've been tasked with meeting with her without causing a ruckus.

And by ruckus I mean having the WB following my tracks.

Viktoria's a rogue. A werewolf masquerading between humans for fifteen years now, and how she managed to not long for interaction with her kind is beyond me, but maybe she has a companion or something.