Fallen Star

Chapter 17

I was absolutely famished and my body was aching but we managed to get one of the Memory Keys! I decided that in itself was deserving of a treat. Sally's sweet, sticky caramel filled my mouth and kept my jaws busy as I strolled out of the stadium and ignored all the police cars. The officers regarded me with suspicion, but they allowed me to run free. Nice.

"Hold it." I stopped walking.

"Did you need something?" I asked, turning to Sayuri.

"Those men in the cloaks... That man named Emyr... You know something," Sayuri accused. "You have a connection to them. What did they want?"

"None of your business," I said dismissively. "This doesn't involve you, so go back to the desert."

"Then you admit to killing Emyr's mother?"

"Of course not!" I said, aghast. "I've never seen Emyr before in my life! I don't know where the notion came from. Emyr's delusional, but the fight between him and me stays between him and me. Trust me when I say that you have no part in this entire debacle. And you don't want to have a part in it either. Go back home, Sayuri. This place isn't for you."

"I already do have a part in it, though," Sayuri said gravely. I raised an eyebrow. "That man who stayed cloaked... I think I know him." I froze. "I think... I think he's deeply connected to my past."

"Is that so..."

"I can't be too sure though, but I have to find out," Sayuri declared. "Who were those cloaked men and what did they want? You know, don't you!?" I exchanged a glance with Empyrean.

"Give me one second." I walked several paces away from Sayuri, enough so that she wouldn't hear me if I spoke softly. "What do you think?" I asked my alien friend. "Can we trust her?"

"I don't think she's going to let us go," Empyrean pointed out. "I predict that she will continue to badger us until she gets what she wants. Besides, if it turns out that she is indeed right about this man from her past, she may very well have a stake in this fight."

"And if she's wrong? We'll have dragged her into a battle that'll probably kill her," I argued back. "She's a good fighter, sure, but she's no Omega. Her heart is soft. And she doesn't have something like Argenti keeping her safe." I gripped the hilt of my sword tightly. "I doubt she'll believe the truth even if we tell her. She can't even see you, Empyrean, let alone the Memory Keys!"

"That... That is true. Let's not get her involved if we help it," the alien agreed. I nodded and walked back to Sayuri.

"I don't know who those guys were," I told her, "and I don't know what they were after. I told you: I'm an investigator. That's what I'm trying to figure out."

"You're lying," Sayuri snapped. "Why did you have to step back for those minutes!?"

"Organizing my notes," I said simply with a shrug.

"You were talking to someone," Sayuri insisted. "And you're hiding something. You're not really an investigator, are you!? I knew it: You do know something! I have to find out who that cloaked man is! Tell me what you know or else!" she yelled, stamping her foot.

"Woah, woah, geez, calm down!" I yelped, putting my hands up. I exchanged another glance with Empyrean and she sighed. Both of us knew this was pointless; we had no other choice but to let Sayuri in. "Fine, fine, I'm not an investigator and I may know something. But I'll warn you now that you won't believe most of it. Let's go somewhere more private; this place has too many people."

I didn't know Alpha City well, but I could at least find my way back to the alley where I'd come from; the alley full of gangsters that led to Omega. With my pendant, I could consider it a safe haven; and a ways away from prying ears.

"Where do I even start...?" I grumbled, pacing slightly. Well, I guess I could just bite the bullet. "This is Empyrean." I held my hands out in a gestural greeting in Empyrean's direction and she waved, despite being completely invisible to Sayuri. "She's a being from the Sanctus World, a world in the stars, and she can't be seen or heard by human eyes and ears. I can do all of that but I have no idea why."

"O...kay?" I couldn't blame Sayuri for her confusion.

I removed Argenti from my belt and held it up and said, "This is Argenti. According to Empyrean, it's a legendary blade from the Sanctus World that was stolen many years ago. But as humans are forbidden from entering the Sanctus World, how or why it came into my possession is completely beyond me or Empyrean. Are you keeping track of all this?"

"I believe so," Sayuri said with a nod.

"Good. Empyrean here came down to Cadere from the Sanctus World in search of five Memory Keys that had fallen out of place or something. Apparently, these things seal away this great big evil guy called Tariel and sooner or later, we're probably all going to be doomed. Empyrean can't return to Sanctus until she gathers the five Memory Keys and since I know that Argenti will only bring me trouble, we decided to help each other with our problems. You can't see the Memory Keys since you're not me or Empyrean and the first of those Keys was what those cloaked guys were obsessing about."

"Is that so..." Sayuri mused contemplatively. "You really don't know who those cloaked people were, but you do know what they were after: These Memory Keys from the Sanctus World. I assume they contain a great deal of power if they were made to seal away this Tariel or whatever."

"Yeah... You're pretty smart! Although... Aren't you taking this a bit too readily?" I asked, slightly unnerved.

"There's no reason for you to lie to me," Sayuri said simply. "Besides, I saw that sword, Argenti, glowing earlier. If it really were some otherworldly blade, that would explain that strange phenomenon despite the ludicrousy of your tale. You also went up to the stage after Emyr and the other man disappeared; I didn't know why then, but a Memory Key was there, right? I assume you have it now."

"Er, Empyrean does, actually. Sanctus beings can store objects in their bodies," I said awkwardly.

"Why do you seem so weirded out?"

"I-I mean... I think it's weirder to take all of this in stride rather than accusing me of being mental or whatever. I expected you to call me a liar or refuse to believe any of what I said. That should be normal, right?" I turned to Empyrean.

"I, too, expected her to display some degree of shock or disbelief," she confessed.

"Glad to hear we're stuck in the same boat," I said. "Anyway, we have one out of five Keys secured, so Empyrean and I are going to continue our search."

"Where do you plan on heading next?" Sayuri asked. "I'm coming with you. If helping you gather the Memory Keys means I can find that cloaked man, then I'm all in."

"Yeah, well... I brought enough food for myself for three days, but it won't be enough for two people," I sighed. "What do you say we head back to Omega?" I suggested, turning to Empyrean.

"I am more attuned to the specific Sanctus energies of the Memory Keys," Empyrean told me. "If there were Keys I missed in Omega, then I am sure I will be able to find it now."

"Perfect. Guess we're going home." I whistled.

"Omega? We're going to Omega!?" Sayuri bristled.

"Is something wrong?"

"I was warned against going to Omega under any circumstance," Sayuri said shrewdly. I sighed.

"It takes an Omega to know Omega." I waved my hand dismissively. "It's not a wasteland of criminals and gangsters. Don't worry, you're safe with me. Besides, you mentioned coming from a small town in the desert, right? Believe me when I say that you'll probably be more comfortable in Alpha than Omega. I saw how you used your fists, you'll fit right in."

Sayuri regarded me with extreme suspicion.

"Fine," she said. "I'll get my motorcycle and meet you here in a day."

"Sounds like a plan," I whistled.

I gripped my pendant in my pocket tightly. I'd planned to stow it away after this entire ordeal was over with, but it seemed that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. I might need it again, and I might need the strength that came with it again.