#truthtellers

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The young adult walked past the stalls, scarf wrapped around her head, her eyes darting front and back in alertness. She was a girl of about eighteen to nineteen, with a height around 1.6 meters. When people looked at her they wondered why they had not noticed her before. She had long, haze-brown hair, thick and rich, which came to a point in her forehead in what people called a devil’s peak. She had regular features and a full-lipped mouth. But everyone else noticed nothing except her eyes. She might have been pretty, but she had deep-set, intense eyes of a startling azure colour, so luminous and penetrating that, when she looked at someone, they felt she could see right into their hearts, and they would avert their eyes, scared that she would discover their secrets. Her gorgeous eyes were prominent, but not uncommon. Unfortunately for her, however, that was the one thing that almost got her killed that day. 

With the Truthtellers patrolling the market, she really had no escape. Walking faster while trying to throw the guards off their path, she could only hear their footpaths getting louder and faster. Heaving loudly and in shock, all four walls seemed to be closing in on her. Her only hope had been to make it out of there alive, but Truthtellers were known for their sharp vision. One look at her eyes and they had radioed the headquarters, “Le dernier raconteur est en vue. Cible acquise .” The last Raconteur. Target Acquired. 

In the middle of the market, on a snowy Christmas night, a girl was knocked to her knees, scarf ripped from her. Shivering in the cold, the guards pinned her down, rifles pointing towards her.  “Comment t’appelles-tu?” What’s your name? they demanded in German harshly, the fury in their eyes being the only thing recognizable from their masked up face. She could have sworn they had spoken in French earlier, but realised quickly that they probably knew both, so she retorted in German with equal harshness, “auf keinen Fall.” No way.  

The guards had never seen such defiance, such anger, such power in a response before, but even that didn’t stop them from looking at each other and nodding, a signal that this was the one they had been looking for all these years. 

And with the watching eyes of everyone in the market, one of the guards aimed for her head and pulled the trigger.  The bullet was as tiny as a pin, yet as powerful as a wild horse. A collective gasp rang among the netizens around the girl as time seemed to slow down into a blur. Clenching her fists, the girl shut her eyes peacefully and mustered all of her energy, hanging on to the warm, buzzing feeling in her heart. The fire in her seemed to grow bigger and bigger but she continued to shove it down, unaware and oblivious to the pain and the bullet that was inching closer and closer to her by the millisecond.  

“ Invoquez le loup à l’intérieur de moi. Le loup du petit chaperon rouge.” Summon the wolf inside of me. The wolf from the little red riding hood. Come on now, the girl thought desperately. She continued picturing the form of the animal inside her, crossing her fingers. Just as she thought all hope was lost and the end was coming near, she felt her nails growing sharper, her bones changing their shape into something more dangerous, something more fatal. The skin on her back morphed into grey dirty fur as her eyes dilated and turned into a darker shade of blue. She felt a growl escape her lips as she started to go on all four. Padding softly towards the guards, she bared her razor-sharp teeth as she advanced towards the soldiers. The bullet landed on the floor with a soft ping beside her and she let out an inaudible sigh of relief internally. Hardening her face, she continued to forge ahead. She could feel the spirit of the wolf, who she personally named Apache, festering inside of her, ready to pounce. To attack. Seeing the four guards holding up their rifles that were poised to shoot, the girl circled around them, not wanting to attack yet, waiting patiently for them to make the first move. As expected, one of the most courageous guards stepped forward stealthily, planning to put her to sleep. But, with a quick glare from the girl, he shifted his finger on the trigger, hesitating for a moment, thinking about whether it was going to be worth it. Idiot. The girl thought. That slight moment for hesitation was all she needed to take advantage of the situation. Using her hind legs to give herself a lift before pouncing onto the guard, she sunk her razor sharp teeth into his arm, letting Apache inhale the scent of the blood in satisfaction. She did not listen to the whimpering of the guard, or his comrades who were busy begging her to stop. The blood tasted metallic, like aluminium getting crushed into a ball and getting stuffed into her mouth.  Instead, only when Apache let out a growl of satisfaction did she let go of the guard’s arm, which had a large bloody hole and was bleeding profusely. Stepping closer to the guards’ comrades, she let a sense of warmness take over her again and she was back to the way she was before, human and everything. Her black mask, sunglasses and cap were back on her and she thanked god for not losing her things. Stalking towards the guards who were now trembling in fear, she held them up by the collar with an undeniable strength and seethed through her teeth,” Mon nom est pour que je le sache, et pour que vous le sachiez. Ne vous approchez jamais de moi à l’avenir.” My name is for me to know, and for you to find out. Don’t ever approach me again in the future. Turning around to face the crowd, she looked every single one of them in the eye. She had possessed her mother’s ability of shapeshifting after she passed on, bringing the villains from old fairy tales to life. The girl could smell the fear that was coursing through their veins. “Shapeshifter.” “Quick, hide your children, lest she do that to them too.” “Agreed.” She glared at the source of the sound and shifted her hands casually, absorbing all the moisture in the air and forming it into a ball, before flicking it towards the three gossiping ladies. Upon hearing the shrieks of the middle aged women, she gave a satisfied smile. In the past, most Raconteurs were only given one ability that they had to harness and develop for the rest of their lives. However, unfortunately for the girl, she had just come of age to discover her abilities, not one but two.  Despite how every word and rumor seemed to be stabbing a hole through her heart, she resisted the pain and gave a sigh of resignation. She had injured four Truthtellers. There would definitely be more to come. Picking up her now-torn scarf from the dirty floor, she dusted it swiftly before wearing it around her neck once more before strutting off the scene. Smirking to herself, she relished in the fear of the public and the citizens. Yes, that’d be about right. Pressing her sunglasses against her face, she pulled down her cap narrowly avoiding the gazes of the public and sunk back into the shadows, back into hiding. 

 She was Cora Blaine.

 The last twister of truth. 

Le Dernier Raconteur. 

In the misty blue smog settling among the sands of the shore, there was a lone boy sitting on the pavilion, gazing out into the unknown. He was, well, different from all others. He was stunning, not perhaps in the conventional sense, but he had that appearance which could make him stand out in the crowd. His skin was as pale as a sheet. His unfathomable, dark green eyes contrasted exceptionally with face. His eyes were as deep and expressive, where people could get lost if they stared long enough. His face had that faraway look in it, which cannot be described in words. His smile, which reached up to his eyes, flaunted his modesty and humility. Often, people could see a hint of pain in his sparkling turquoise eyes, which would disappear as suddenly as it emerged. He sometimes spoke too fast, which perhaps revealed how much agony he concealed within himself. Above all was his frame and his stature. He was not extremely muscular, however, he could stand out in a crowd, which was mostly due to his way of carrying himself. Perhaps he was not the kind who had many girls swooning over him, but he was simple and innocent. He was perhaps, just one in a million, who was “nothing special, but all the same unique”. That boy, who was stuffing his hands in his pockets, slid down the slide slowly and cautiously from the pavilion. Turning his head to scan his surroundings, he then stood up to his full height. Basking in the sun, he was around 1.9 meters tall in height. Running a hand through his black raven hair, he ruffled it after hours of running and training in the sand. From afar, he could see the girl’s from his tribe staring and gave a friendly smile while waving. Almost immediately, he saw one of the two putting her hands on her forehead in shyness and laughing wholeheartedly to her other friend whilst pointing at him. That was his childhood best friend, Ava, together with her friend Kate. They had grown up together and had been inseparable since birth. Only in the recent years that he found Ava to be behaving strangely, avoiding him and all. He still could not fathom her behaviour but he was still satisfied that he had not lost his only friend. He had not stepped out of the village for years but he had heard rumours from the other Truthtellers in his tribe. He believed them wholeheartedly for it was all along believed by others that Truthtellers weren’t able to lie for if they did, their lifespan would be cut short by a month for every one they told. The boy shuddered at the thought of having to live a shorter life. Yes, despite not leaving the village for an entire 18 years, he was still optimistic that he would be able to see the outside world one day, just like how his seniors and ancestors did. Staring at the house in front of him, he could not help but resist frowning as he looked at the burnt building. Despite the accident happening years ago, he could not help but feel a shiver crawling down his spine as the memories of that painful incident burnt his head, making it throb. Stumbling back, he cradled his face with his rough hands as he retreated back to the safety of the nearby shelter. The truthtellers were always a peaceful group of people who had meant no harm. But ever since his birth, he had caused nothing but trouble. The boy tries to hide his fear and pain behind a mask of optimism. Not a single soul, even Ava, was able to break down his facade and make him feel whole again. Just then, his mind drifted back to two blurry figures. The frown that was etched on his face became more prominent as he let out a breath that he didn’t know he had been holding in. He could feel the burning heat that was threatening to seep out of his hands but he inhaled a sharp breath before calming pounding ribcage. They shouldn’t have left when he needed them the most. Regaining back his calm and composed demeanour, he plastered on his poker face before walking towards a rugged hut where his lunch was awaiting him. Upon entering the house, he saw a tiny lunchbox with messy handwriting hastily scribbled on it,

To my dearest nephew,

Adam, Remember to eat your meals on time and stop skipping them! You need to eat more lest you faint during training and I wouldn’t want the first aid people to come. You know how nasty they are. I’m watching you…

Adam let out a deep hearty laugh that resonated throughout the empty house as he read and reread the post-it. His uncle always had a way of cheering him up everyday no matter how lethargic he felt. His uncle was a middle aged man, maybe around his late forties? He was shorter than Adam by at least a head, his golden hair duller with age. His eyes were a darker shade of turquoise than Adam’s, but somehow more prominent and cheerful, even if he was tired. He didn’t have Adam’s beauty--he had crooked teeth and a too-big nose, but people who met him said he was entertaining, fun, jovial, and more often than not, handsome. It was the inner beauty they were talking about, Adam figured, and cast a forlorn glance at the wooden floor in the hut.  If it was inner beauty they saw, he thought, I would be cast out of the world. Sighing, Adam opened up the lunchbox and picked up a pair of chopsticks, digging into the simple meal of fried eggs and rice. It wasn’t much, but Adam appreciated the thought nonetheless. Besides, his uncle was already so busy with everything as he was the head chief of the tribe, a simple meal of fried eggs and rice must have made him pass out for a few hours. Smiling contentedly to himself, he stuffed the stir-fried food into his mouth and devoured it hungrily. Even though the rice tasted expired, he was still glad that he had something to eat. It was better than nothing for the record. Still pushing the small portions of food into his mouth, his mind wandered back unconsciously to the past few days. During physical training days he had always seen Ava either hiding behind a tree or giggling with her other friends. He felt himself drifting further and further away from his best friend. What happened to the “no secrets” rule? Did she forget about it too? It was a pact that they had sworn when they were younger, to never keep the truth away from each other. But now, he felt as if he didn’t  know Ava that well anymore. Maybe it was because of the fact that they no longer hung out with each other since she had learnt about her new found ability, or maybe it was because of the fact that Ava became more and more popular throughout the village that she no longer had time for him. Either way, Adam did not feel jealous of the attention she was receiving from the locals and the other Truthtellers. After all, Ava was known to be one of the most wealthy girls in the village for she came from the Johnson family, a family known for their extreme wealth and generosity. Many of the boys in the village vyed for her attention but she was known to turn them down without a second thought. But nowadays, he could sense that something had changed in his best friend. When he passed by the Johnson’s house, he could always see bouquets and bouquets of flowers spewing out of the house from her suitors, which didn’t seem to be right as Ava always complained to him about how unhygienic those flowers were as they were picked directly from the ground. Clenching his fists, Adam snapped out of his daydream and stabbed the pair of chopsticks right into his rice in frustration. Why was no one listening to him these days? Was he no longer of any importance to others? Thinking about how he was cast aside by his good friend made him feel a sense of pure hatred. But he wasn’t going to be mad at her for the pure fact that she had stood by him through thick and thin throughout the years they had been friends with each other. That’s right. He had to be strong and brave as usual. In the village, it had been tradition for men not to cry for if they did, they would be deemed as cowardice, causing them to face scorn and disdain for the rest of their lives. He saw Ava as his younger sister, nothing more, despite how the other villagers have been speculating about their friendship. But still, there were times where he questioned everything in his life, from friends to family, and always felt alone and afraid. Despite the brave front he had been putting on for all these years, he could slowly feel himself faltering and wavering, his fearless facade slowly breaking into pieces. 

What people saw was a boy who was strong and fearless, but what Adam Bancroft saw in his reflection was a fragile boy who was scared and broken, ready to be carried away by the wind. 

Cora charged like an angry bull towards the target. The Truthteller threw up his forearms like an offensive lineman blocking a defensive back, but Cora slipped to the side, pushed the man’s elbow down and away, caught his head, and rolled him into the floor. Third of a second once contact was made, and she was on her feet, watching the muscular man rush toward her in slow motion as the three other men, even more slowly, jumped to their feet.  The muscular man reached under his shirt as he pushed past the dirty woodblocks along the alley. Cora did not try to stop the gun; she rolled her hand under the man’s wrist, drove the man’s arm over and back, and pulled him backward and down. Cora had the gun before the man slammed into the floor, and she hit him, hard, on the forehead with it two  times. However, Cora Blaise could predict that the other Truthteller was going to attack her next in line. He put out a nice stiff left, which he planned to follow with a right cross. But Cora slipped to the left, which threw him off enough so that she could step inside the right cross and get a handful of his hair. She pulled his head forward and broke  his nose with her head. Still holding his hair in one hand, she dug another hand into the guard’s shoulder and lifted him off the ground before slamming him down on the hood of the nearby truck. He grunted, and went limp. When she stood back, he slowly slid off the hood and lay in the street with his mouth open. Tackling the third guard, she threw a linebacker drilling a quarterback from the blindside, a clean shoulder-to-shoulder hit that arched the guard’s spine. The gun clattered from his hand and skittered into the drainage ditch. Cora kept coming, driving his legs, finishing the hit before smashing an elbow into the side of the guard’s skull, the soft spot high on the temple. Finally, she came to the last standing guard. He’s strong, She thought. But not strong enough. Running swiftly towards the guard, she slapped her right palm down on the man’s face, shattering his nose. Yanking back the Truthteller with her right forearm, she snapped the man’s neck like a tree branch. He sagged and she immediately shoved him away. Cora had expected this attack. No, she had anticipated it. Only after landing a final punch to make sure all the guards were dead did she let her body relax. Pulling up her mask and tying back her tangled hair, she dragged each of the guard’s bodies to the corner of the alley, breathing heavily,  before stealthily darting away from the bloody and gruesome scene. “That was close,” She mumbled, walking into the sea of people that had just finished work. Keeping her cap low, she pushed her disguise tightly towards her face, afraid that there might be Truthtellers around that would recognize her distinctive eyes. Her hands were badly bruised and were sore from all the fighting. Stumbling into the nearby petrol kiosk, she placed ice cubes into a bowl and ran some water and before putting her hands in to soak. Cora knocked, no, killed four of the Truthtellers, which was a much worse outcome than her last encounter. Dropping onto the floor, she took a deep breath. It hurt her rib cage. Her eyes widened in disbelief. Cora exhaled and inhaled again before inching her arms under herself and pushing herself up on her hands and knees. Her head swam. She felt her stomach tighten and she threw up on the floor, which garnered the store holder’s attention. Hearing slow and steady footsteps that were approaching her wearily, she could hear a faint voice, “Miss? Are you okay?” Nodding her head, she flicked her hands which hurt her ribs some more. Wincing, Cora  stayed that way for a bit, on her hands and knees with her head hanging, like a winded horse. Her eyes focused a little better. She could now see the various shelves in the store clearly. Cora crawled over, got hold of the nearby sink and slowly got herself upright. Everything blurred for a minute, before coming back into focus again. Taking one last deep breath, she hovered for a second before glancing at her ribs. There it was. Although her black oversized shirt was dark in colour, she could still see the faint glimmer of crimson red against the fluorescent lights. One of the guards must have stabbed her while she was busy defending herself.  Letting out a sigh of tiredness, she held one of her arms close to her ribcage to keep pressure on her wound before staggering out of the store. Since young, she was taught to use fake words, lies, and to be deceptive. She was taught that one should twist the truth to hide themselves from the world, and use it as a shield to protect themselves from sources of harm. This way everyone could be safe and sound. Though people always said that the truth was ugly, it was the truth that had wiped her whole tribe from existence, leaving her alone. It was the truth that caused her to be deserted and to no longer feel warmth from others. The truth was far more dangerous than any weapon in the entire universe for the truth was something that could kill others without physical violence. Dragging her body back to the small pavilion in which she was temporarily staying in, she landed on the floor with a heavy thud before groaning in pain. While her legs were haphazardly sprawled on the floor, she reached for the ointment and bandages that were discreetly hidden in a box. Wincing while applying the stinging solution onto her ribcage, she took the opportunity to examine her injury. The wound wasn’t that deep, but it was deep enough to leave a scar. Red stained her slim and slender hands as she desperately tried to wash away the blood stains using the remaining water she had for the day. “I'll be back before you know it.” A disembodied voice rang in her head. Snapping up in alertness, she scanned her surroundings. Was that Momma? Did she finally come back for me? Cora started to tremble upon seeing a glimmer of hope. She tried her best to make the voice reappear in her head for a whole hour but to now avail. She could have sworn she heard her mother’s voice echoing beside her just then. Perhaps she had become delusional, or even psychotic. But that was no big deal. All she wanted was to hear that voice, that asuring voice once more. To comfort herself and to tell her that everything would be fine. No matter how desperately she tried, she couldn’t bring back the voice that she heard earlier. Sagging her body, her shoulders formed a permanent parentheses around herself. No matter how hard she prevailed, she would always come back to reality. The cold, hard truth. She was just plain old Cora Blaine, who was unfortunately born into a Raconteur tribe. Nothing more. Her true self was hidden, hidden away from the world, away from the judgmental gazes from the public. “She’ll never be worthy.” Those four words were the pure reason why she continued to develop her abilities after the war had happened. It was her way of showing everyone her rebellion, a side she wasn’t comfortable in showing in the past. She had a point to prove, to show everyone that she could do it, and that she wasn’t afraid to fall, to make mistakes. Scrunching her brows together, her mind started to form furious bubbles of thoughts in her head. The Truthtellers were behind all of this. Why did they want her so badly? She was already torn and tattered, fractured into pieces. She had nothing left to offer or give to the Truthtellers. Whatever she had left was not valuable, even if it was, it wouldn't change the fact that her loved ones were dead, buried, with not a single one left breathing.

But that was fine.

Death. Death was inevitable wasn’t it?

It had already stripped Cora off her freedom, her innocence, her family. 

What more was there left for her to sacrifice?

That’s right, she thought, Nothing.  

Now standing upright in the dark, lonely pavilion in the middle of the night, a vengeful silhouette of a girl vowed to give Death, 

A taste of its own medicine. 

The small flash of light. What was it? It seemed so...so foreign. So out of reach. She stretched out her arm, wanting to hold that tiny bit of light in, but it danced away, flickering in and out of existence. She frowned, attempting to stand up. But she couldn’t--her legs were tied to the ground. Squinting her eyes, she could only reach out a helpless hand in hope that the dot of brightness would land right into her arms. That was when she realised that it was just a dream. Reality sunk into her skin and bit her hard as she saw the paint of light fade away into the abyss, never to be seen again. The truth hurts. But she had to be brave. For she, the young woman, couldn’t afford to back down after coming so high up. Oblivious to what was waiting for her, she could only keep the past memories of the ground sealed in her palms as she traveled up into the unknown, waiting and waiting for the worst to come. Down on the ground, she could see families prancing around in pure joy, their thick scarfs keeping them warm from the cold. The young adult wasn’t jealous at all, not one single bit. But she longed for communication and for someone who would care for her, just like family. But that was just a hopeless wish that would never be fulfilled. For the young woman was made to be a lone figure, never meant to be discovered by the world. 

Adam woke up to the sound of shouting and yelling. Rubbing his eyes, he held back a small yawn before getting up to wash his face. It has to be Evan and Jacob again, He thought, rolling his eyes in a taunting manner. Evan and Jacob were the two playful children that liked to bother him early in the morning without fail. However, unbeknownst to Adam, it was two grown-ups who were having a heated argument--his uncle and another Truthteller. “Have you seen the number of injured Truthtellers that have been coming back to the village?” A furious voice that was filled with rage resounded through the entire village. “Yes, I am aware. I am trying my best to work on it so please, stay calm, before a fight starts.” “Let’s have one. If you die in the battle, I’ll be crowned head chief now, no?” Adam’s eyes widened in realisation upon hearing the familiar voice. His uncle was in trouble again. And this time, he might even lose his power status. Slowly finishing up his morning routine, Adam stepped out of the house gingerly out into the open only to find his uncle and a fellow Truthteller, Kora, who he was familiar with, faced off on the wooden floor in the gathering hall. The area was wide enough for the two of them to fight and not hurt others. Kora threw off his dark cloak and revealed a man clothed in a black tunic and long tight fitting tan pants, bound together with a rope at his waist. His face was scrunched up in anger. He slowly drew a long sword from his belt slowly, the blade making a hissing whisper as it was removed from the sheathe. All the while, Adam’s uncle, George, was holding Kora firmly in his gaze. George was wearing a sleeveless red shirt and loose fitting black pants. On either hand, he had sturdy metal gauntlets. Adam’s uncle bent down and stretched his back. He turned his neck from left to right and popped it with a series of clicks in rapid succession. Then, he proceeded to do the same with the rest of his body as he loosened himself up. “Don't hold back or I’m going to break you,” Kora snarled. George just shrugged his shoulders, smiled, and slowly brought one foot behind his back. He put his weight on it and brought an open palm up. “Wait,” he said and put his hand up to say “stop”. Kora turned his head in curiosity. There was a band of players that were playing for a tiny shop near George’s right and they had an array of instruments. The jaunty tunes that brought Lockwood Village to life came out of their instruments. They had everything from woodwinds, to percussion, to string instruments in their possession and were quick skilled with them. George looked over at the band of players. He reached into his pants, pulled out a coin purse, and tossed it to them. “Play something I can tap my foot to,” he said with a winning smile. The band leader grabbed the purse out of the air,”Onem two…” he tapped off, then his band began playing a quick, pumping melody. George turned his attention back to the fight. “Now, where were we?” And with a quick flick of his hand, as if to say, “Come on,” towards Kora, the fight was on. Adam watched his uncle in disbelief. His uncle was always picking fights with the villagers. Who knew if that might be the death of him one day, Adam wondered, watching the fight progress. Kora rushed at George. He dipped and weaved right just as he was about to reach him and slashed downwards with the sword. George parried with one of his gauntlets and the blade clashed against the metal strapped to Kora’s arm with a shriek that sent sparks flying into the air. The swordsman was quick and uppercut slashed at the hand to hand warrior, attempting to catch George from the stem all the way to stern. George sidestepped to the right just in time for the blade to pass a hair’s breadth from his face. Quickly, before Kora could respond with a follow-up, George swiftly punched Kora in the stomach, knocking the wind out of the swordsman, and stunning him for a brief moment. Adam continued observing the fight and came to a conclusion that it was a “powerless” fight where the Truthtellers could only carry out physical attacks and not ones with abilities. The fight had taken George and Kora dangerously close to the edge of the cliff nearby and George had his back dangling in the air, despite his counter attacks. Kora was still open for more attacks though, and George wasn’t done. The quick blow had opened Kora up for another attack and George obliged him, putting a simple sidekick into the swordsman’s stomach, doubling him over. George followed that up with a quick rising uppercut. The crowd watching their fight let out a collective wince for the man. Taking the opening and using the environment to his advantage, George back flipped onto the wall and pushed off towards Kora. The maneuver sent him front slipping towards Kora and just before he reached the swordsman, George flattened his body out, feet first. Instead of colliding with his adversary though, George opted to wrap his feet around Kora’s neck instead. The maneuver caught Kora off guard as he was recovering his wits, once again. George gave him an apologetic shrug mid air, as if to say “sorry” for what was going to come next. George used his momentum in a creative way, instead of piling into his opponent; instead, he jerked to the right and swung around Kora. Then, when he was directly behind his opponent, George curled his legs into his body body and angled his body towards the ground, changing the direction of his fall, putting the weight of his jump into a powerful throw. Kora was pulled off his feet violently and was thrown across the floor. He skidded and tumbled along the ground, uncontrolled. He was stopped by the other end of the floor, about five feet from the wall. A groan escaped his lips as the pain from the attack started to settle in. Kora looked up and his eyes opened with surprise. As George was about to let go of Kora, during the throw, he had planted both hands on the ground. When he completed the attack, George sprang off his hands, throwing himself into a quick backspring, followed by another, another and another to build momentum. When George was almost close to Kora, he bounded off the ground and threw himself into a spin that would have made an expert gymnast jealous. Flattening out in the air like a sideways whirling tornado, he made sure that his body was perpendicular with Kora’s as he neared the fallen swordsman. George’s spin got increasingly fast as he whipped his arms in and out, efficiently putting him into an almost uncontrollable  rotation, arced at Kora. Just as George was about to reach Kora, the warrior threw one of his legs out, shin angled down. The entire force from the spin was pushed into his leg. The entire crowd including Adam was silent and it was as if time itself was holding its breath as George descended. Every person watching the fight was so enthralled, watching for the next move in the fight. However, Adam turned his head away, not able to keep up with the violence. Kora barely had time to breathe, let alone dodge. But, it was a testament to his experience in battle that Kora kept the presence of mind to roll to the right in a desperate dodge, towards the wall of the nearby house. Just in time. George’s leg smashed into the ground, slamming into the ground with his knee and shin flat into the wood. Adam’s eyes widened in horror as he saw his uncle crushing the floor into a torrent of splinters that rose up around him in the air. Seeing George sprawl onto the floor, most swordsmen would have allowed their opponent to stand up. That was the honorable thing to do. However, there were no rules in this fight. Adam’s breath lodged in his throat as he saw Kora charging towards his uncle. With the speed of a cat while the splinters were still hanging mid air, Kora spun his body around and swept his foot towards his opponent's head. The attack was so quick that George wasn’t hurt; it actually pushed the assassin a foot and a half into the air. George was curious, why had that not hurt? That was Kora’s intention. Swiftly, he rolled forward and halfway through, slid straight so that he slid under George and stopped facing the rising assassin's back. Adam was not ready for what was to come as he let out a scream of fury, cursing at Kora. Kora cocked both arms back and double punched upwards into George’s back. Air whoosed from the head chief's lungs as he was pushed even higher into the air. The impact from the attack gave Kora a couple feet between him and George. Kora looked to his right and saw the lip of the floor, just an arms length away now. “This is going to hurt you, just as much as it is going to hurt me,” Kora promised with a forewanced wince. Kora quickly performed a handspring to his feet, crouched just under George with his legs choking him. Kora exploded from the ground towards George’s rising form. He grabbed the assassin around the arm, twisted mid air and arched the two of them towards the wall, easily angling George’s head first. Adam let out a horrified yell as he pushed through the crowd, begging Kora to stop. By then, tears were already streaming down his cheeks as the scene unfolded in front of him. George collided with the raised floor and his head plowed through the woodwork with a painful crackling and crunching sound as the wood shattered under the enormous pressure from the attack. Adam was crouched low with his hands covering his eyes in pain. He didn’t even know the cause of the fight and now he might stand a chance of losing his last kin. Kora let go and managed to land on two feet and his face was set hard and unreadable. Anger flashed through Adam’s veins, pulsing and fueling the fury that he felt. An amazing way to start the day, Kora. Turning to his left, he saw his uncle’s body hanging vertically for the briefest moment, suspended in an ephemeral moment in time, then he collapsed, head still firmly stuck into the ground. The rest of him hit the ground in an uncomfortable position which made Adam nauseated. Standing out from the crowd, the flames in him were begging to be freed, to be released. To be honest, no one knew that Adam had already developed his special ability but he just didn’t know how to control it yet. He could feel the burning heat rising from within and before he knew it, he was already shooting out flames from his palms. He could feel the prickling heat around him but the red hot flames on his hands were ice cold. He couldn’t feel, couldn’t think. All he wanted to do was just to rip and tear Kora into half and make sure he was never seen again.  Tears were stinging Adam’s eyes as he cried his heart out in pain and fury. His last family member was gone, that damned Kora was all to blame. And with only Kora Carson in target, Adam muttered to himself,

“Ignite.” 

With the flames dancing precariously on both of his hands, Adam’s eyes turned into a dangerous colour of crimson red as he stalked towards a cowering Kora.

“Treat this as a lesson to you, to never hurt the head chief.”

And with that, Adam landed both flames onto a shrivelled Kora, making sure he was never to be seen again.

He had cried. No, he had mourned. But it was still considered crying, the boy confirmed to himself. He was trudging along the cold hard floors of the hut, freezing without the warm presence of his uncle. Looking at his trembling hands, he could not believe that he had killed one of his fellow Truth Tellers. He was sure to now be an outcast. A betrayer of his tribe. To make matters worse, he had cried in front of the large population of Truthtellers. He was sure to be deemed as a coward for the rest of his life, for all eternity. Looking at the clothes that were strewn all over the floor, the boy’s face hardened as he pondered on it for a moment. The luggage and bags were all there. All he needed was to pack them up. After contemplating for a long time, he scrunched his eyes in confirmation. Yes, he’ll do that. Now scurrying to pack his things up before the other Truthtellers disdain him, he quickly wrote a note on a post- it and pasted it on the clean walls of the hut. And in the middle of the night, a lost and hopeless pyrokinetic dashed out of his home, his comfort, his sanctuary, to explore the outside world for the first time in his life.

Dear Uncle, 

I know you aren’t there. But I wanted to say a big thank you for all that you’ve done for me. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to protect you. But I’ll make sure things take a turn for the better. I know you’ll probably be disappointed with me running away like a coward but it’s for the best.. I hope you’ll understand. I’ll make things go back to the back they were before. For now, rest assured.

With love forever and always,

Your beloved nephew.,

Adam