Republic Of The Shadow Walkers - Naomi's perspective

Clashes of steel against steel rang throughout the NightWalkers' base, but it was muffled by the door that separated me from where the sparring was taking place. Twas a good thing, or else I wouldn't be able to concentrate very well on reading Ry's message.

Oh, really?

And I will do what is necessary as well. I am prepared for whatever is coming.

But are you REALLY? I wondered.

I felt a twinge of "I probably shouldn't do this" and "what if they believe I'm evil?" and "what if I ACTUALLY turn evil and I don't even notice?" as well as "what if I end up having to kill one of them to protect my country?"

I can't stay true to my ultimate goal like this! The old me wouldn't have even thought of doing this.

No, they're not your friends. They tried to KILL you, for crying out loud! Why are you so merciful?

But-

Glitch bombed Langdale. Dark and Ry tried to assassinate you. All of them have falsely accused you. And you STILL give them mercy? Does that even make sense?! You're soft, too soft for anything that your country expects of you. They see you as a leader; one that will defend and protect THEM, not their ENEMIES who seek to defeat them! Your heart is going to be the death of you if you let it get to your head.

Wait a minute… Aren't you the part of me that Izzie warned me not to listen to, after the aftermath of Elizabeth's death?

Perchance.

The vibe I was getting from the queerly familiar mental voice was definitely negative, but it seemed to be telling the truth.

Then it clicked.

The voice was my dark side, where all the hatred, grudges, loathing, and most of the negative emotions that I frequently experienced went. I kept everything under the surface in order to keep a calm and self-controlled state, but since I exercised that so much, it had built up over time and became a side of me that I never wanted to show to anyone.

I had hidden it for most of my life, but only three times had it ever made an appearance on the outside. I now had it almost completely under control, except for the fact that it could interfere with my thoughts.

And that certainly was dangerous, having a small but convincing voice inside your brain.

It interrupted my thoughts again, why don't you just attack? Strike them back? Don't they deserve it? You have to be strong enough to defend your country.

I didn't respond, but instead thought of things that had absolutely nothing to do with any of this, in order to shut it up.

But it's right… There's really no reason not to strike back, now that they've crossed the line.

My decision made, I quickly shot Tim a text.

Oi! TIM! Battle planning?

A few minutes went by before he responded with, Ayy, sure. Why not?

Why not, indeed? I responded.

Get Miss Murderous Glare and we'll do a conference call, K?

Miss Murderous Glare?

Bethany, you twit.

😂 Sure.

I opened the door, and Bethany was right there, quietly talking to someone. When she saw me, she said, “We'll finish this later. But please consider what I said… Our very fates might be in your hands.”

I raised my eyebrows. “What?”

“Stealth mission planning. Don't worry, I got it under control. But I can assure you that it's for a good cause.”

“Alright.” I nodded, secretly hoping that I'd get to see what a stealth mission would look like in NightWalker standards. “Anyways, we need to do some battle planning.”

As soon as I said the word “battle,” Beth was fully alert. “Let's do this,” she smirked. I knew that planning battles and missions was something that Bethany was very good at, and she also enjoyed it somewhat.

I nodded. “Come on,” I beckoned her into the office, and we started our call with Tim.

~~~

“So, basically, Emeraldia is going to be bombed?” I simplified the plan in one sentence.

“Yep.” Bethany and Tim said in unison.

Tim ended the call, and Beth and I sat in silence for a long moment.

Then, she coughed, getting my attention from the dragon statue on the desk to her. “I think I should probably explain some things about the NightWalkers. You've never been here much.”

“Go ahead, Professor Ashkill. I'm totally ready to fall asleep during a lecture,” I said sarcastically.

Bethany pretended to be offended, and then snorted. “I don't think it could be called a lecture. Come on, you know I'm horrible at speeches and all that crap. That ain't my thing, persuading more than one person at once, trying dramatically to get a point across, or explaining detailed plans in front of more than two people. No thank you, I'd rather be bitten by vipers.”

I smirked a little. “Oh, that's the first. The dauntless Bethany Ashkill afraid of speaking in front of crowds and giving speeches?”

“Unfortunately, that is correct.”

“Oh, so you're scared of talking?”

“NO.”

“That's basically what it is…” I muttered.

“You know what? Just shut up and let me explain some things. OR ELSE.”

“Or else what?” I rested my head in one hand.

“OR ELSE… I dunno… You'll be… Um. I'LL TAKE AWAY YOUR CHIPS.” She gestured at a small bag of chips that was on the edge of the desk.

I blinked. “You do know that bag’s empty, right?”

Bethany facepalmed. “Just kill me.”

I rolled my eyes. “Just do your thing.”

“So, about how the NightWalkers work… There are several categories in which they are sorted into: Stealth, Strength, Agility, and… Other.”

“Other?”

“Where the unique people go, the ones with some special talent or specialization, but it mostly consists of really smart people who love researching and strategizing,” she said knowledgeably. “The others are self explanatory. Basically, how it works is that they're all sorted out so that I can assign people tasks more easily and also keep track of people a lot better than I would without the categories. It doesn't affect their training much, however, most people like to focus on the thing they're categorized in. There are some who try to balance everything, though.”

“That's cool! One question…”

“What? Did I not explain it well enough?” Beth sighed.

“No, why haven't you told me all this before?”

“Actually, I have no idea. Probably cause you were busy and I didn't want to throw a bunch of information on you that didn't really matter.”

“That makes sense,” I nodded.

The door opened, and I looked over to see… Nothing.

“Who is it?” I stood up, wondering if someone was pranking us.

“For your information, I am down here.”

I jumped at the voice that came from a queerly short guy whom I couldn't see when I was sitting down behind the desk.

“Oh, hey Kat!” Bethany recognized him, and I looked at him curiously.

“Isn't Kat a girl's name?” I asked.

“Yeah, but my parents liked the name Kat when they named me. I guess they had a sense of humour.” He shrugged, and I realized he was standing on a chair to talk directly to us, and even so, he was an inch or two shorter.

“Naomi, this is Kat. No, it's not a nickname, it's his actual name.” Bethany introduced. “Kat, I'm certain you know my sister.”

“Who doesn't?” He chuckled.

“And even funnier is the fact that his last name is Short,” Beth laughed, and I raised an eyebrow at Kat.

“Is that true?”

“Yep,” he said, nodding. “Kat Raymond Short. It's weird, I know, but it's my name.”

“Your parents must have been hilarious,” Bethany commented.

“They were.” Kat smiled sadly.

“What happened to make you so short, if you don't mind me asking?” I wondered.

“Oh, it's fine, I'm asked that a lot. Basically, my parents were both short people, and I happened to get sculliosis. Pure misfortune.”

“Sheesh…” I raised my eyebrows.

“But, I am in both Agility and Other, and I'm proud of that feat,” Kat said proudly.

I was confused. “How are you in both of those if you're so…” I gestured at him.

“Short?” He finished. “Well, I can climb very well, since I had to learn how in order to get around easily, and I'm also extremely smart for my age, and a total nerd.”

I looked at Bethany for confirmation, and she nodded.

“That's cool.”

“It is. Well, I came here to get you, because I need to talk to you about something.” He nodded at Bethany.

“What?” Bethany asked.

Kat beckoned her to follow him out of the office. “Excuse us, Milady.”

I nodded slowly. “Go ahead, I'll see you later.”

As they exited, I exhaled through my nose, took out my phone, and put my music on shuffle, since it usually helped me to calm down.

Well, usually.

“Listen and hear a song the birds are singing…”

As I listened to the song, parts of it started to stick in my mind and repeat.

“...This is your fault, right?”

“...Standing in the corridor, who thought we'd be here like this together?”

“...I believe there was a time… Where we could be pals, and things were better…”

“...Enjoying laughs… Can we go back to that?”

“...Let's please forget all of this. Even after what you did, he believed in you… Till the end...”

“...Give up.”

“...If you're my friend… Please…”

“...How could you have done this...?”

“...Is there still a glimmer of hope...? Will you choose to do the right thing?”

“...If you're there… Have a change of heart…”

I gritted my teeth and chose another.

I can't change my decision. This is the point of no return… Tim's already preparing to attack Emeraldia. There's no going back.

“How could you have done this...?”

That line echoed in my head. How COULD I do this?

I'm sorry, but I gotta do what I gotta do.

And that involves being their enemy.

~~~

I kept my hood up, and glanced around me for any sign of people watching. Good, nobody would see me exit the base.

Briskly, I walked across the dusty road, since there was nobody around to watch me. Well, except for the “super-secret-stealth-bodyguards” Bethany had put on me. She told me that since my permanent bodyguards were currently on an assignment, it would have to be like that.

I was fine with it, honestly. As long as I didn't have to have anyone next to me constantly, I was fine. I liked to have my alone time.

But, to be honest, the fact that several people constantly had their eyes on me from where I couldn't see them was a little frightening.

But I dealt with it like a pro.

I ran, sometimes walking to save more energy, along the dusty road until I came to the larger part of Sonraeria. I planned to hit a library, and also get some more supplies, since we were in need of stuff down there.

The streets were more empty than I thought they'd be, but they were still quite busy. My gaze searched the street for any sign of a library, but there weren't any.

Yet.

When I turned the corner, I tripped. Looking at my ankle to see what I had tripped over, my gaze landed upon the cat. The cat.

Are you for real?!

I growled at the cat, "Curse you, you darn CAT! What is up with you and always tripping me?!"

The cat strolled away, almost as if it was saying, oh, don't mind me, I am just tripping the leader of the Republic every so often, no big deal. It's not like she wants to roast me alive or anything...

When the cat was gone, I noticed that the first building to my right was rather long, but not every wide. It gave off a calming vibe that caught my attention, and I peeped in the window. Shelves of books greeted my gaze. Delight sparked in me, and I opened the door.

A bell, triggered by the opening of the door, rang as I entered, and dim light greeted me. No electricity seemed to be involved with this place; it was lit by candles.

“Hello,” an old and raspy voice greeted. “Haven't had visitors in so long.”

“So long! So long!” A parrot imitated from across the room.

I also heard yipping from behind the desk in the far corner, and I saw a cat watching me curiously from the top of a shelf.

I concluded that whoever it was really loved pets.

“Hello, I'm Miss Ellis.” The old raspy voice from before introduced, and I looked around for the source.

"Ellis, Ellis!" The parrot echoed.

The person introducing herself was sitting on a rocking chair, sewing something with a needle and thread. I wondered how she was working so efficiently, since she couldn't be younger than 90, at least.

She slowly stood up, setting down her sewing and grabbing her cane. “Don't mind my pets, they're my only company. I haven't had visitors in just about forever… Who might you be?”

I remembered that my hood was up, and took it off. “My name is Naomi Ashkill.”

"Aaaashkill?" The parrot tilted its head, as if it was examining me. It would have been creepy if it didn't have a cute beak that looked as if it was smiling.

Her eyes widened. “Of all people to walk into my home…”

“Wait, this is your house? I'm so sorry!” I said in surprise.

“Oh, no. Ma'am, this is a library, and I own it. I don't have enough money to pay for a house as well, so I live here instead, with Ari, Mittens, and Fifi.” She smiled. “Anything specific? I know this place like the back of my hand.”

"My hand, my hand!" The parrot cawed again, and Miss Ellis shut it up by tossing a piece of an orange at it.

“Do you have any history books? Like, recent ones? Specifically on the times during the war with Radish Land? I'm looking for the history of my family line, if that makes sense.”

“I might just have some books on that… Follow me, dear.”

She was quite speedy for a 90-year-old; she went faster than I thought she would have. Perhaps that had to do with the fact that she could still sew at this age.

I knew that most old people had shaky hands and couldn't move that fast, but I had heard of exceptions to those normal occurrences. She apparently was an exception to both.

Gesturing at a book on the shelf, she nodded at me. “This should be the book I'm thinking of.”

I took it off, and then asked, “Why isn't it as dusty as the other books?”

“It's rather new,” She replied. “I just got it a week ago. Also, it's newly published.”

This must be useful, if it's that recent and it has the history of the Ashkill line. “Thank you, Miss Ellis.”

“You're welcome. Feel free to read anything in here; you're always welcome to come here and read whenever you want to. I don't have any grandchildren, except for my granddaughter, whom I haven't seen in a very long time. You remind me of her.”

“I do?”

“Indeed. Also, I absolutely love your hair.”

This was nothing new; people had been commenting on and admiring my hair color ever since I was a child.

“Thank you!” I smiled at her. “I'm sorry about your granddaughter, but I'll try to visit every so often, okay?”

“Thank you, dearie.” She walked back to her rocking chair, and I was greeted by a tiny Chihuahua whom I assumed was Fifi. I crouched down to pet her, but she growled at me and shied away.

“Oh, I forgot to mention that Fifi bites.” Miss Ellis called over from the front of the library.

"Fifi bites! Fifi bites!" The parrot echoed again, seeming to also know the fact that Fifi was aggressive. I noticed that it had finished its piece of orange.

Cute dog, I observed the Chihuahua who was keeping her distance. It's a shame that she's aggressive.

I remembered some of Bethany's stories of how Chihuahuas were practically miniature demons from when she used to be a professional dog groomer, and I now believed them.

Setting the book down on a little table next to a window, I sat down in front of the book and opened it, going straight to the Table Of Contents.

When I found the category “History Of The Crather and Ashkill Family Lines,” I turned to the beginning of the section, not knowing what I would find in those pages.

~~~

Bethany's perspective

"Alina."

She nodded at me. Alina was one of my city spies, and she was reporting back from her assignment.

"Did you find anything?" Please tell me you did.

"Unfortunately, no. I'm sorry, I can't find her. Neither can Alice."

"Curses," I muttered. "Whoever she is, I have a feeling she took part in a lot of things... Once I get my hands on her and get all the information out of her, I'll make sure she pays for what she did."

Alina looked away as I looked at her, and I knew she was afraid of me. Everyone was, except for my own siblings, who were also scared of me to some degree, but not as much as everyone else that existed.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Alina. I don't see a reason to. Now go and take part in the sparring; you'll need the extra practice."

She nodded quickly, and then left, whispering a relieved thank you to me as she exited.

I growled under my breath. Naomi had enough things on her plate, so I had to track down this lady myself, with my NightWalkers and my intimidation skills.

Oh, what I'll do when I get my hands on her...

~~~

A/N: For some reason, I love the parrot. I dunno why.

What will happen next? What exactly will happen within Emeraldia when the Republic attacks? What will Naomi discover inside the history book? Will she find what she's looking for? Will Bethany find the one she's looking for?
Who even IS the person she seeks? Will Fifi bite anyone? And will Naomi keep her dark side from coming back to her conciousness, or will it take over and cause havoc? Find out next time, on Chasing Chaos!

Okay, see ya!