S a l e t é I I

XIV - Mains - Onze

Eventually, they reached the yard that she must have been referring to earlier.

It wasn't as large as the one surrounded by the old garages at the end of the leftmost route, and it appeared to be a sort of storage space for one of the closed warehouses, as Cassia could see a large shutter ahead. Several decrepit crates, wooden in design, with faded labels and stickers were present, and it looked as if Monet and her girls had broken up a few of them already in order to salvage the pieces.

"This is the only task I permit with less than three people, only because we do not have to leave the immediate area." Monet explained along the way.

There was a pile of garbage in one corner of the area, a common fixture in their district of Lower Merveille, and even that was worn and weak, things like old bottles and little containers within being crumpled and layered with dirt and dust.

Segments of the walls were covered in scratches, the warehouse before them looking even more rundown than theirs, all of the windows running along just below its roof broken, some of the glass still resting on the ground below. How did the even get smashed, being as high as they were?

It was another largely colourless corner of the underground, mostly dark and decorated with the residue of what had once been an industrial hub. Nothing new, nothing exciting, and certainly nothing captivating.

The old boxes and crates that remained all appeared to be empty, as if they'd been left here for use in a future that had never come to be.

Propped up against one of the walls was an old piece of a small pipe, almost as long as the cane that Klavdiya made use of. Monet headed straight for it, picking it up, insinuating that she'd been the one to leave it there in the first place.

"One moment."

She proceeded to use that pipe to strike one of the remaining crates, delivering a surprisingly hefty overhead swing, the first blow visibly cracking the wooden frame of her chosen target - they weren't exactly of the most durable quality to begin with.

She quickly followed the hit up with a second blow, and this one shattered a good quarter of the crate, the wood it was made of breaking away messily, revealing the emptiness within. Monet could now swing the pipe at the broken side of the box, her third blow breaking off another good chunk.

By this point, Cassia would be sure to feel sorry for anyone who tried to pick a fight with the older girl.

Monet began to gather the broken bits, accumulating a good few pieces of reasonable size, putting them to one side. Cassia set about assisting with this task once she saw what the girl was doing, Monet acknowledging her help with a brief, emotionless smile.

"It's quite satisfying. You should give it a try." The older girl said to her.

"Oh, uh, okay."

Cassia had signed up for a go without actually thinking about it, that desire to not disappoint kicking in.

She doubted that she would be able to actually break anything by herself.

Monet handed her the pipe, which was cold and slightly grubby to the touch. Cassia didn't allow such sensations to bother her too much, remembering Monet's earlier posture, gripping the implement with both hands as best she could as she approached another, untouched container. Monet continued to dismantle what remained of her target with her hands in the meantime, easily breaking more pieces away.

Cassia landed her first blow, bringing the pipe down from over her head in the toughest motion that she could muster. Whilst the impact let out a notable crack, nothing actually seemed to come apart. She was a little disheartened, considering how easy Monet had made it look.