Essentia Animus

18-Inconclusive Evidence

Even as the three girls found slumber, three others had sleep continue to elude them. The sun might have long passed over the mountains, but the quiet day's end was grounds for some disappointment.

"Nothing, nothing at all?" "I'm sorry, I was at it the whole day, there was nothing like that anywhere all over the city. I'm not sure if you've bothered checking the news yet today, but there has been nothing but silence all across the city today, my boss is really not impressed. Really, I can't afford to keep at your wild goose chase anymore, I've got a job to do. I'm lucky I might have a lead to anything tomorrow, all things considered." Liyuzhe scowled, not happy with the news Ieqyisa's brother was providing. He was right too, even today's news was devoid of much of any substance. Still, she knew she had reasons to be concerned, her childhood friend having no real way to fend for herself if put into the wrong situation, and the two shrubs with her not exactly being much value to the ways of the real world. At this point, she was getting desperate for anything.

"Really, you've got a lead tomorrow?" "Not related. Got some people with some table scraps, associated to the Hunters." "Hunters? Hells, you really don't want to get involved with them." "You can see just how bad the position you've put me in is. Look, you said this was a bit of an internal problem, so if you don't have anything more for me to work with, you're going to have to do the legwork yourself. So if there is nothing else, I'm tired and want to call it a night, going to have a busy day tomorrow." "Alright then, whatever. Goodnight." Liyuzhe hung up on Ieqyisa's brother, accepting that her attempt was a dead end after all. She wasn't happy with this outcome at all, knowing that Khyzae would have handled things so much better. If she was even a fragment as good as her childhood friend at making the most of her resources, she wouldn't have such reasons to be so worried right now.

"Hells, Liyuzhe, what's happened to you?" "Oh, nothing much." "Nothing much? By the divine, you take your work far too seriously, bleeding all over the floor like this." "I'm not bleeding over the floor, I know how to tie myself a bandage, stop over-exaggerating." "Of course, you got amazingly good at it after all the scuffs you and Khyzae got into, the both of you being impossible sometimes. This is why I keep saying we need to actually have a medical expert around, someone who can at least keep up with how often you two get hurt." Fhyernx was blowing another fit, Liyuzhe certain the gash on her leg not being nearly as serious as he was making it appear. Ever since that one time a couple years ago when Liyuzhe had broken her leg, he'd been pressing harder for someone with the gift of healing. Khyzae had told him that she would be willing to accept a healer if he could find someone she would be willing to trust.

"Speaking of, how's that search been going for a half-decent candidate?" "I, uh..." "If you've got nothing, then shut up. It's not even broken, I can walk perfectly fine." "So, nothing on Khyzae?" "Nope, not a thing. So if you're done slacking off, maybe you should just worry about your own work." Liyuzhe was not in the best of moods, and she knew it wasn't exactly fair to take it all out on Fhyernx. Even her own injury had been caused due to her own state of distraction over the course of the day, and thinking about it only made her irritation worse. Khyzae wouldn't have tolerated such distraction either, always being so composed and methodical even in the worst of circumstances. Not that she wasn't someone who cared, the same time Liyuzhe had dealt with a broken leg, Khyzae was all over a methodical approach to ensure it healed as rapidly and effectively as possible, making sure she stayed comfortable through the process. They had even gone to a real medical office to make sure she had proper care, Khyzae having funded it herself. But now Khyzae had gone missing, leaving Liyuzhe in a fit of endless desperation and worry.

"So I take it my brother was still useless?" "Ieqyisa, perfect! It's been an entire day of nothing, leaving me really concerned, so I've changed my mind. Can you take to the city and do what you must to find her?" "Khyzae? That probably won't work." "What? Why not?" "Khyzae is a whirlwind of change wherever she goes, impacting the lives of every single person she graces with her presence. Meanwhile, not a peep, anywhere, the city is just a span of silence. The only way that would even be possible is if she didn't want to be found. I mean, I seriously doubt my brother was a layabout arse the entire day, no matter what else there might be to complain about with him. If he was sniffing for news, and she was waiting to be found, we would have gotten news possibly before lunch. Meanwhile, I would be willing to bet that he's instead passed over her today already, probably more than once. If she really is that unwilling to be found, I don't stand a chance in finding her." Ieqyisa made sense in a way that only made Liyuzhe more disappointed. Maybe there really was nothing to be done about it.