Metanoia

City: Chapter 13

There were sirens. Screaming everywhere. Ringing in his head. The world was spinning and everything was becoming a blur. His eyes cracked open. All he saw was corpses and gore.
Everything was spewed out. All the parts of the body that weren't meant to be outside sprawled around on the floor. About a million dead bodies littered the place in what appeared to be a intricate design. Nothing he could distinguish but it definitely meant something.
There seemed to be discrimination between them. The variety went from old to young, male, female and identities in between, no nationality was left out in the blood bath. Bloody presentation made a work of art. A horrid work of art.
Renjun looked around him. He was no where near the massacre. Instead he was on what was similar to a throne. Peering down, he realized he was in an extremely tall building. And all he was doing was spectating the disgusting spectacle. There was a pit in his stomach and he felt like vomiting. However, as he glanced away from the sight, he spotted his reflection in the window.
That person looked nothing like him. With their flaming red hair; exquisite attire; their wry smile that let sharp teeth peek out; and those flaming orange eyes. He was completely sure that was not him in the mirror. It was the devil.
It let out an amused laugh and stood up from where they sat. Pressing clawed hands against the glass, the demon was able to phase through.
A flash of terror ran through and the blond struggled to leave. However when moving his hands and feet, he only found them strapped to the chair. The same scenario he's seen multiple times. Except this time, it was him who would be killed.
They came closer with slow, deliberate steps and a taunting grin.
"Hello."
Renjun didn't dare to respond.
"I didn't think you would come." Stopping right in front of him, they leaned down a bit to get a better look at him. "It's nice to see you finally visited me."
'What the hell does that mean?' The thought rang out in his head. He tried to avoid eye contact with the monster but he couldn't help but be drawn in by the bright orange eyes. The corner of the demon's lips turned upward even more, if that was possible.
"You know exactly what that means." They placed the tip of their claw against his forehead, pricking his skin only slightly. "That mind of yours hasn't had all it's potential unlocked yet." The hand made its way down to rest on his cheek. "But in due time it will."
They leaned their head closer so their nose was brushing against his. "I hope you enjoy your stay....Renjun."

A flash of colour invaded his vision. The runaway's breath hitched as if he hadn't had air the whole time he blacked out. Surges of pain coursed through his body, stabbing at his limbs and scratching against his veins. His muscles throbbed with an aching sensation and he felt as if someone was drilling a nail into the side of his head. What felt like sharp stabs against his skin grew worse. Curling to the side he let out a scream of pain, eyes becoming cloudy with tears. Everything hurt. Everything was hurting so bad. It almost felt as if his vision was clouding again. There was a sharp pain in his back, he was feeling a wooden stake push through his torso. The blond's whole body felt like exploding. He could hardly breath without claws digging into his ribs. His eyes were burning. His mouth parched. All he could smell was something intoxicating. Trying to move was no help. If he dared to even blink it would feel as if he was being burned alive by the agony. His heart was beating to fast. Too fast for his breath to catch up.
The world went away once more.

"Ah.... I should've took the dart out sooner...." A voice echoed through his blank mind. "That probably would've helped you....."
This time around, Renjun awoke to a more peaceful feeling. He was in a rather dark room, laying on a less than luxurious bed. He was in what looked to be a run down hotel room. There was one giant bed in that took up nearly the whole place. An old tv placed right in front of him. The volume was down but he could still hear the sound coming from the cheap speakers as the horrible quality of the show played. Walls were cracked and ripping from the old, stained, tacky wallpaper strewn lazily across it. The window to his right pretty much just a frame with the thin, cracked glass. In fact there was a giant hole that was large enough to fit two bodies. It was duly covered by ripped curtains that went horribly with the rest of the rooms colour scheme. Beside was a medium sized desk with normal hotel amenities, besides the large, bloody dart. And the first aid kit with its supplies spread about.
Sitting in the cheap, cushioned chair was Jeno. His body hunched over with his head in his hands. Hair tousled into a mess with how much he probably ran his hands through them. The expression on his face clearly showed his stress and perhaps the headache he may have been having. His clothes weren't torn in the slightest, however there were some stains of red that didn't look like it came from his own wounds. In fact he had no wounds to speak of. At least not externally.
"......Jeno...." Renjun felt his voice come out hoarse and cracked. He must have been unconscious for a long time.
The raven haired boy's head went up at the sound of his name and his visage transferred immediately from tense to relieved. Getting up promptly, he took a small pail from beside him and swiftly went to the bedside. "Oh my God you're okay." His voice also sounded rather rough, like he had been crying. "Thank God.... I thought you would have been dead for sure..." Placing his warm hand against Renjun's forehead, Jeno checked if anything else was wrong. To the best of his abilities of course.
"Dead?" There was a questioning tone in their as the blond tried to recall what he meant. His memories were still quite foggy. "Why would I be....."
Then it hit him, similar to a plane. It all came to him at once. Severely overwhelming, Renjun's hand shot up to his head as it became a loud combination of shots and screams. Images where flooding into his head. He could see it all. He could perceive it all to clearly. And then he remembered the blood. The knife. The weight. And the man's face, crushed into his skull.
His body jerked to the side where the pail was and he vomited.
"Ah." Jeno went silent, rubbing his friend's upper back gently. "I shouldn't have mentioned it...." He stared at the bucket that was once filled with water and scrunched his nose. But he wouldn't dare say a snarky answer at this time.
The disgusting concoction was disturbed by drops of water. Renjun's body racked with sobs. "What the fuck....."
Bringing himself up again, he didn't deny the wet wipe Jeno gave and he wiped his mouth. Tears happened to get absorbed as well. The memories were becoming way to clear in his mind.
"It's ok...." The athlete reassured. "All your wounds are treated and patched up. I got the dart out. And no one is going to chase after us. Because I lost them. Also the dart isn't a tracking device. Don't worry I already checked-"
"It has nothing to do with that!" Renjun shouted weakly, a bit of pain prodding against his back. With trembling hands he threw the messy tissue into the pail as well. He had no regard for anything around him at the moment. "I......."
He could hardly bring himself to say it. There was a knowledge that if he did, the bile would come back up again. The smaller teen wasn't keen on feeling things that again for the time being.
However, despite his refusal to say anymore, Jeno apparently got the gist of his words and nodded. With the silence settling into the hotel room, the taller boy picked up the bucket and carelessly threw it out the window.
".....You do realize that one action could give out location away." Renjun croaked, trying his best to distract his mind.
    His friend shook his head and walked over to the table to gather some of the first aid supplies. "We're way to deep in the slums of this city for anyone important to notice us. Plus I doubt anyone would know what we looked like. Especially since I wore a mask when dragging you out. And I hid your face in the scarf I stole." He flinched, not satisfied with the criminal actions he had to take to save Renjun. But it saved him nevertheless.
    Jeno turned back to the blond, holding up some bandages and sanitizing alcohol. "How about we talk about this while I retreat your wounds?"
    Flushing, the other nodded, just now noticing the feeling of a tight bandage around his waist and right arm.
    With that the raven haired boy sat casually behind Renjun, carefully lifting his shirt up to reveal the bloody bandage. "Damn... it really bled a lot."
    The wounded teen half flinched and half shivered from the cold air hitting his skin. His muscles trembled as Jeno brushed his hands along the area Renjun was hit. He started to unravel the long gauze gently, attempting not to hurt his friend anymore than he already was.
    "... I was hit by that dart correct?"
    "Yep." Jeno poured some of the liquid on the swab to clean the wound. "It came from the highest floor from what I saw."
    He instantly knew who was being mentioned. "The guy with the orange eyes....." Renjun heard a questioning hum and decided to continue his explanation. "When I was at the top floor, I interviewed a strangely common looking man like we planned. Everything down to his answer was oddly bland and void of emotion. Unlike the others I had talked to. Then, once I left to the next floor below. I saw him come after me..." He suddenly hissed at the stinging pain on his back.
    "Sorry..." The raven haired boy apologized, continuing to clean the wound more. "Continue."
    Renjun huffed. "Anyways, the man was dressed in the exact same attire as the other two that had chased me in the town. But obviously he had a dart gun instead of the more lethal version the others had carried." Pausing he thought about it as a new bandage was being wrapped around him. He could feel Jeno's breath against his neck. "I.... I think they are trying to hunt me down...."
    "Makes sense." Responding in a curt manner, Jeno moved around to start working on Renjun's arm. "But why you specifically?"
    "I think the answer is pretty obvious. They know I want those answers about Goldenleaf. They have been listening to the towns movement and found out my intentions." He locked his intense gaze with the athlete. "That's why they aren't hunting you. Because they know that your original intention was just to get away from grief. All the more reason to find out who they are and what they're doing."
    "That's the next step in the plan than?"
    "It's the same step as when we entered that building." Renjun insisted, clenching his teeth against the pain. "Except now you're the only one that can do it. They won't hunt after you. So you have to roam around the city to try and find out something about them. I'll be here flipping through the channels on the TV."
    Jeno pouted, despite the serious situation which made the blond smile a bit. "I'm doing all the work? That seems unfair."
    "Actually I'll be inspecting the room, the dart and the channels for any clues. Especially the dart. It is the only thing that has come straight from the suspects themselves..."
    Nodding, the taller boy finished his work and placed the remaining supplies on the bed. He sat beside Renjun and let out a sigh. "We can start that tomorrow. Today we need to rest."
    The smaller teen hummed out in content and carefully laid back down beside his friend. "Agreed."