Sol Ka Rouu 001

“When you stop to think about the night, your first thought isn’t the stars in the sky, or the moon’s shining light. 

It’s the darkness. 

It’s the darkness and the eerie quietness it brings. In the dark, you don’t feel safe from the things that can not see you. 

You feel fear…fear from the things you can not see.

Fear leads to panic. 

Panic leads to desperation. 

Desperation leads to bravado. 

And bravado? 

Well bravado is the reason you entered the night in the first place.

Welcome to helplessness and congrats on your loss.”

Inside one of the inn’s upper rooms, the afro boy laid in a bed with his eyes closed and with his back to the window. He had switched into a white tee and black sweatpants before entering bed. The wind blew against the trees outside and branches scraped against the window panes. 

Slowly and eerily, a darkened silhouette floated up to the room glass. The figure phased through the window and hovered over the boy. It then slowly removed a hand from its shrouded body and reached out towards the him. 

The afro boy’s eyes shot open and his irises glowed orange. He spun around and kicked out of his covers to strike the figure but it dodged him and floated back out the window. The boy wasted no time and leaped after it. He broke through the window and dashed to the ground so quickly he seemed to disappear and reappear. 

He landed on the ground outside the front of the inn and slid a distance on his feet. When he looked up he didn't see the figure but instead saw a young girl standing across the yard. She looked asian and was dressed in a dark purplish outfit that resembled that of a ninja. She had long straight black hair and was slightly shorter than the afro boy. She stared at the boy and her irises started to glow purple. The boy’s expressionless face turned into a frown. The girl reached behind her back with both hands and revealed two sais. She then leaned forward almost to the point of falling and sprinted towards the boy.

When she was close enough, she thrusted one of the sais at his face. The boy tilted his body slightly to the side and dodged it. The girl's feet slid in the dirt as she missed. They both froze for a few seconds. The girl’s arm still thrusted and the boy was still standing still. Suddenly, the girl turned around and slashed at his back horizontally. The boy then ducked it without turning around and swung one of his legs around to sweep her. The girl flipped over his leg and landed behind him.

The boy turned toward her and kicked at her face. She blocked it with one arm and stabbed at his leg with her free arm. He kicked the sai out her hand with his other leg while flipping backwards. The sai went spinning into the air. The boy landed on his feet and opened his hand. The sai dropped perfectly into his palm. This time he rushed the girl and slashed. She blocks him with her sai and the two proceed to slash at each other, clashing repeatedly. 

The boy thrusts at the girl and she spun out of the way to his left and kicked him in the abdomen. When she kicked him however, her foot phased through his torso and his body faded away into a blur like a mirage. She stumbled backwards and then felt a cold metal press against her neck. The boy stood behind her and was holding the sai up to her throat. 

“That’s enough Twyla. I’m not in the mood for games.” The boy stated to the girl.

The girl smiled beneath her mask and her body faded away from his hold in the same mirage fashion. The boy felt a blade pressed against his neck and the girl stood behind him holding out her sai.

“You were always talented, Archy, but did you seriously think you could beat me with my own technique?” The girl replied.

The girl then pulled down her face mask with her free hand and a soft white light shimmered over her body. The light flashed outward for a second then receeded. When the light had completely faded, the girl who stood behind him was gone and a different girl stood there. Her hair was kinky and puffed out and her skin was as dark as the boy’s. She was slightly taller than him and had a mischievous smile on her face. 

“Still though, I have to give you props for seeing through that illusion and figuring out it was me,” she stated.

The boy remained quiet.

“As talkative as ever I see…”

“What do you want, Twyla?” The boy replied with a frustrated tone.

“Isn’t it obvious? You disappear for two years and all of a sudden you stir up a storm in the ITCU. Not to mention you took not one, but two Solace agents for this operation. What’s your plan? Why did you come here?”

The boy remained quiet.

“Answer me…” Twyla pressed him.

“It doesn’t concern you.”

“I’m giving you one more chance Archy.” 

Twyla raised the Sai higher up the boy’s throat.

“Don’t make me have to…”

Suddenly, a whistling sound pierced the silence of the night. Twyla looked up and saw a silhouette high above her with its fist pulled back. She released the afro boy and leapt backwards from the attacker who plummeted and slammed his fist into the ground. As the boy landed, the sand on the ground bursted upward from the impact. When the dust and sand cleared, Twyla saw that her attacker was none other than the blonde boy. He stood up and faced her with an annoyed look on his face.

“La…You dare to raise your hand against a fellow agent of Solace?” Twyla inquired as she twirled her sai around her finger.

“I don’t care if you're from Solace or even if you were one of the leaders of the Sovereign courts, If you raise your hand against Arch I’ll end you myself.” The blonde boy stated while cracking his knuckles.

Twyla looked up at the afro boy and realized he had placed his hands in his sweatpants pockets and didn’t even bother to turn around.

“I see…”

She sheathed her sai and pulled back up her mask. A white light shimmered over her and she returned to her asian appearance once more.

“Master Lucius will not be pleased, but if this is the path you wish to take then so be it.” She said while walking over to a nearby lamp post.

“And one more thing Archy…” she continues, “I hope you're willing to pay the price for taking our people’s most powerful weapons for your own agenda.”

The afro boy started to walk toward the door of the inn.

“And that’s where you’re wrong Twyla… We aren’t weapons, and we belong to no one.” 

Twyla scoffs. She walked behind the lamp post into its shade and disappeared.

The front door of the inn burst open and Mr. Sacclin appeared along with everyone else who was inside.

“What’s going on out here?! Why is my window broken?! Why is there a crater?!” Mr. Sacclin questions frantically.

The blonde haired girl steps forward.

“Archy! La! What happened?”

“Twyla.” The afro boy responded concisely while walking inside.

Mr. Sacclin closed his eyes and sighed. Kai noticed the blue haired girl gritting her teeth.

“Let’s get some rest everyone,” The afro boy said before walking upstairs.

The asian boy sighed and followed behind along with everyone else.