Genesis (Prophecy Rock Series, Book 1)

Chapter Fourteen

You can buy this book and other titles in the Prophecy Rock Series at Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Sony, iBooks, and Smashwords.

14

“Let’s split up,” said Raden. “We’ll cover more ground that way.”

“Oli and I’ll take the fish markets,” replied Gama.

Kara stretched her back. “Alright, I’ll take the religious district.”

Raden nodded in agreement. “That leaves the restaurant sector and the residential districts. I’ll start at the Briny Seahag, it’s the most popular destination in Pyteria City. Let’s meet at noon, that’ll give us about three hours to search. We’ll meet up at the city center. Keep a low profile, we don’t want to bring any undue attention to ourselves.” Raden stared at Gama pointedly.

“What? I promise, Oli and I will keep it cool. Right, Oli?”

Oli looked up at Gama, and cocked her head to the side questioningly, as if she didn’t believe Gama either.

“If anything happens, rendezvous at the city center.” Raden put on his hood, hiding his face in shadow. “Let’s go.”

As Raden headed towards the Briny Seahag, he took in as much of his surroundings as he could. Most of what he saw was relatively harmless, people purchasing groceries, having streetside conversations, and generally going on about their normal business. He was walking in the shade of the buildings to keep as inconspicuous as possible when he accidentally bumped into an elderly couple, causing them to drop their belongings.

“My apologies,” Raden said as he bent down to pick up the fresh fruit.

“That’s quite alright, dear. No harm done,” answered the elderly woman cheerfully.

The elderly couple looked so familiar. Raden’s mind flashed back to the days after his escape from Carhay. Lulu had discovered him and Kimi washed up on the shore and had successfully guided them to the nearby village. Raden could barely walk at that point, his legs felt like rubber, and Kimi suddenly weighed him down like a ton of bricks. Slowly, they meandered into the middle of the village when Raden’s legs finally gave out. He collapsed to the ground, Kimi began to cry, and Lulu barked loudly for help. Soon, a handful of villagers came to their aid. Raden remembered being carried off by an elderly couple, their faces cast in shadow by the sun. He couldn’t hear what they were saying either, his hearing muffled, as if he was still trapped underwater by the rapid current of the river. But the warmth of their bodies made him feel as if everything was going to be all right.

“Thanks, son, for picking up our stuff. We’ll be on our way now.” Raden’s mind flashed back to the present.

“Oh, I’m sorry… here you go.” Raden handed the fruit back, and continued on his way to the Briny Seahag. I need to focus on the mission. Get a grip, Raden.

After their encounter with the Gokstads, the group headed west, backtracking the Gokstads’ journey. They followed their trail, and remnants of their campfires. Along the way, they had spoken to a number of people who had seen the Gokstads, as well as other groups of Vicedonian colonist armies moving through the Disputed Lands. The people did their best to stay out of the way of these roaming armies of now-mercenaries, but could still hear the chatter amongst them. Something strange was driving them away from the Vicedonian territories, and the word constantly on their lips was “Candidate.” They spoke their own native languages but “Candidate” popped up time and again. Villagers pointed west to the city of Pyteria as the best source for news. It was there that many of these roaming armies must’ve stopped for food and shelter. And on that suggestion the group now found themselves here.