Chapter Twenty-Three: Cracking the Moon

With Lady found, X drags me back to the Hollow Kite where it had landed a few obliterated streets over. Siem was just outside the airship's opening, taking in the ruins and rubble in the pure afternoon sunlight that probably hadn't touched the city in over a decade. X drags me passed him, his grip on my fingers ensuring I couldn't go anywhere but where he wants. Which was back inside the Kite and forcing me into a seat. When my ass hit the chair, I could feel a wave of exhaustion hit me like a truck. And it hit hard. The edge of my vision actually swayed, and I was half convinced we were on the water. Lady sad beside me, her stare was intense on my face. I felt like it was burning my skin off.

Lady no burn skin with eyes.

I must have accidentally thought too loudly. Then stop staring so much.

Dreamer wanders off. She moves her head closer to mine. Not this time.

I think the cat is literally grounding me.

I let out a breath and somehow notice X was still holding onto my hand and I squeeze his for a little bit of comfort. I was about to close my eyes and drift in the dizzy exhaustion but interrupted by someone's presence shift in front of me.

It was Siem, moving in to sit closer to Oz and barks an order to take them back to the "secret lair".
"Yue has just demanded we speak face to face," he adds, tiredly.

"Right now?" Oz asks. "Shit is literally falling down around us, and she wants a talk?'

"It's because shit has fallen around us is why she wants a talk."

"Mate. She started it."

"How did she start anything?"

I could hear the shrug, "She called in the cavalry."

"What other reaction would you expect?"

I felt like they've literally just had this fucking conversation and it was going in loops.

"What's done is done," Siem exhales. "All I can do is defend my people before Yue decided that we should be on the front lines. Again."

"She wouldn't, right?"

Siem met Oz with silence.

"Fucking...this is why I hate politicians."

"Better us than her city," Siem played the leader's perspective.

"What city?" was the snark reply from Hanna who had sat up from her seat.

"Not now, Hana."

"No, I think I will."

"Hanna," Siem warned.

"What?"

"No."

She probably poked her tongue out at him but instead chose to grumble to herself. For now.

I knew there were still a lot of Hexers out there and who knows how long the Miasma storm would last. It just sounds like a losing battle and from what I can hear...one that Yue would probably be willing to chuck Siem and his secret party club at. But my annoyance that stirred under my skin is more directed at how much Yue knew about her city. About Bolin and the truth of his Tower. The truth that I have been forced to hold. Bolin was kidnapped. Seth was kidnapped. So many of these child soldiers have been turned and twisted for war or to function as the city's power grid. How much was known by the one who 'ran' the city? Was her knowledge skin-deep or did it run far into the darkened depths of the city's infrastructure?

I don't know what I'll do if the last bit was true. Probably go apeshit. Even though I'm bone fucking tired. Even though I'm still half-naked. ...I'm still half-naked. I look up at X, who looks back down with a difficult stare. "Any spare clothes?" I whisper, knowing any more effort on my part would cast Hanna's attention and her sticky paws in my direction. I wasn't in the mood for her badgering and questioning. But I was going with Siem. Whether the Viking liked it or not. I wanted answers directly from her and then...I don't know...

I shake myself from thinking that far ahead. If that...if she knew about what people have done to Seth and Bolin...maybe she would have something on my family that she wouldn't even tell Siem. I bite my lip, my thoughts were already hard to get through as it is but now it's trying to race through so many possibilities that I was probably overheating and going into meltdown.

Just a little longer. I just need to be awake a little longer.

X must have gone off while I was mentally wondering because the next thing I felt was the soft fabric of a hoodie and sweatpants landing in my lap and his usual distant gaze accompanied it. I nodded to him and got up to try and put the new clothes on somewhere away from an audience. I went just out of the cockpit, waiting for the door to shut behind me and by the looks of it X was hovering over me like a mother hen. It was slow going for me and I felt myself leaning on X even after the ordeal of changing my pants to less holey ones.

Feeling his body against mine, almost made me sink into sleep but I shook it off, earning a concerned stare from him. "You should be asleep. Seth is asleep."

"What about you?" I point at his chest while trying to force myself up and away from it. I sway like I was drunk. My voice cracking and raspy.

He shook his head. "I am trained for this. You are not."

"Uh huh," I huff. "I need to hear what this Yue person wants."

"Involvement in obscure things will lead you into a path of endless fog that tricks you into believing your desires are one and the same as that fog."

Lucky me, I didn't think I was going to get Yoda X with me today.

I stare up at him, not able to resist pecking him gently on the cheek. "I need to hear if she knew Bolin." Otherwise, I ain't gonna sleep. Lady is probably right. I am stupid.

We landed on the ground, just outside of the building where I had first wandered into the city just hours ago, but it felt like a lifetime now. The building was still standing but everything around it was left to the chaos. It took me a bit to convince Lady to stay on the Kite but once I got her to pout and agree, I followed Siem and Hanna into the open foyer that was long since abandoned. Well, it should have been but a tiny Asian lady accompanied by a bunch of muscle guards in suits was waiting. Her eyes were keenly on Siem.

Yue stood tiny with an attitude that made up the altitude difference between her and the Viking bear. Her haircut with a sharp razor edge at her jaw would probably be a pretty good indication of her pointy or prickly personality. Well, that and the frown on her face as she stares up at Siem, uncaring at the fact that they both had to crane their necks to see each other. It would be comical, except for the fact they both stare with a hard edge at each other, though Siem looks a bit more tired.

Her gaze switched over to Hanna as well. She stared at the people who she had employed to help her city, standing in the ruins of said city without much remorse.

"You had as much to play as we did in this Yue. Do not start pointing fingers solely at us," Siem showed that he was going to start the fight.

If it was possible, her glare hardened and she snaps out, "My City has crumbled under you watch, Siem."

"As under yours as well," he snaps back just as icy.

Jesus Christ.

"You did not think to warn me before you pulled a stunt that would crumble Bolin at its very core?" She folds her arms, her eyes sliding over to me. "And letting your monster walk about after destroying it."

I feel myself stiffen at the word 'monster'. Uncalled for, really. I was hoping she would at least buy me dinner before the pet names begin. Though it still stung. I feel X's heat on my back, holding a little comfort in him being there. I should have brought Lady. But then again if she thinks I'm the monster, I'd hate to think what she'd do to her.

"Do not jut out your assumptions, Yue," Siem slams with almost a growl. "That boy is probably the only reason why we are even able to have this discussion."

"You keep hiding things from me." She ignored his statement.

"As you do as well."

Silence settled for a moment before she waves her hand. "Explain then."

"Your Tower was infested with a Queen and for a while at that," Hanna offered a shrug.

"And that involves...him how?" she motions to me.

Siem looks hesitant to release the information.

But Hanna continues, probably tired of the word dancing already. "You are looking at the one person who can take down a Queen without going crazy."

Yue unfolds her arms and walks over to me. Looking at her more closely. It was really hard to tell how old she is. But even though she only came up to my chest. I could feel her authority and the charismatic pull she had. And the hard decisions she had to make. But that didn't lessen my waiting anger and the question I had for her, even under her scrutinising gaze.

I should have just gone to bed but here I am.

"Did you know?" I stare her down. "Did you know Bolin, the person and the connection he had with that Tower?" I glare at her, uncaring about what it meant drawing more attention to myself. Raspy voice and all.

She stares at me, not even letting any emotion slip on her face,

"Did you know?" I repeat, waiting for her response.

"...No." she finally admitted.

"You didn't ask?" I raise an eyebrow.

"I was not the one who raised the Tower. I was told it kept us safe. Nothing more. Nothing less. I took at their word, and it was performing just fine." Until I wrecked everything literally an hour ago.

No one looks into the infrastructure of something if it works. No one looks at a grid if the electricity is on. No one looks inside a battery while it runs.

She switches her gaze back over to Siem, "Now what? We cannot live outside of the Tower's protection for long. The Miasma will drive us insane." At least she was more of solution-type of person who didn't dwell on blame for too long.

For once I felt kind of relieved at being an Outsider, rather than a Civ. No headache or insanity for me -wait... I already have that in spades. Bah.

What are the people of Bolin supposed to do now? It wasn't my problem...and it probably wasn't even Siem's either. But she was at a loss.

"For now, we've opened up the old city railway tunnels and moved people into them for shelter," Siem offers. They began talking back and forth, even with their hackles still up.

But my mind was elsewhere. For some reason, my mind went to the face that the Tower was the core of...everything. Protection, power...

Bellasera had lost its walls but...

It still had electricity when I left...there was probably someone still... My eyes widen at the thought, and I drag X back out to the Kite, ignoring the stares and questions from everyone until I found Oz who was lazily leaning over the controls in the cockpit, probably getting ready for a nap, expecting the catfight between Siem and Yue to be a while.

But I twisted his seat to face me, his eyes wide with shock as I say, "Take me back to Bellasera."