Am I Not The Hero?

Chapter 11 - Akira Verez

I headed through the alleys of Flumen, only now realizing how tiny this town actually is. I knocked on all the doors, but no one opened them; all the lights were off, too; it seemed like all life was wiped away. My brain told me to stop walking and turn around, but my heart wanted me to continue. ‚One last try' I thought as I knocked on the door of the town's tower. Still no response, so I turned around to get to the others again when I bumped into something. „Ow," I heard someone say, but no one was there.

What the fuck? I reached into the air before me, thinking I was going insane, but then I touched something. „Let go of me; you prick," the air said again, and I got even more confused. „Alright, you got me," a figure started appearing slowly. They had long blond hair tied into a bun above their head, eyes as blue as the ocean not too far away, and lime-colored skin similar to mine. Their ears were shaped like mine, and from what I could tell, they were also Zaratan.

„Did you just hide yourself with Tendrá?" I curiously asked. I knew it was possible since I had read about it in books when I visited Abuelita in Aescamyr. In the olden days, when Zaratans were only living underwater, they used their Tendrá to hide themselves from predators that also lived underwater, which is why the other nations thought they had vanished from the Planet. But those practices were forgotten when Zaratans started living on land over the centuries.

„What are you doing here?" the stranger asked me.

„I asked you a question first."

„I won't repeat myself; what are you doing here?"

I couldn't just tell them I was on the way to kill space aliens with my friends, so I had to lie. „My friends and I are traveling the country; when it started raining, we thought that maybe we could wait it out in this town," that was believable, right? They looked me up and down for a moment before sighing. „Alright, you and your friends can stay over for the night, but no more day and they must leave the other townspeople alone. They don't like strangers in this city."

They clapped their hands two times, and the globe above them started to disappear. Meanwhile, more and more people began to appear around them. The streets that felt so empty and cold before were suddenly bustling with life. „And for the record, I didn't disappear; I just erased us from your view," the person explained before they walked off again.

I ran over to where the others were still waiting. „Who is the hero of the day? Don't answer that; I already know it's me," I joked and gave Esme a high five, „you did great, now let's get some food. I'm starving," she said, and they wandered into town.

The food was surprisingly good; I had to admit that. I never really enjoyed seafood; I know it's Ironic, but whatever I was putting into my mouth at that moment tasted like heaven. „Can I order another one of these?" I asked the bartender in front of me as I finished my plate. „Aye, slow down, boy, you're going to feel sick if you continue eating like that," he pointed towards the other empty plates which I had eaten off, „I just can't resist your food tastes too good." „Papa Joe just makes the best food all around town, don't you, Papa joe?" The stranger from earlier said as they seated themselves next to me.

„I sure do, Elliot. You want the same as always?" Elliot nodded, and the man disappeared back into the kitchen. "So your name's Elliot then?" I turned around to look him in the eyes. "It sure is, and what's your name again?"

"Akira, I know, it's an awesome name; I chose it myself," I answered before I took a sip of my drink. "Do people in your culture hose their names themselves?" he then asked me, and I had to laugh, "no, Elliot, I'm trans; that's why I could choose it," I explained to him, which now that I'm thinking about it was maybe not a good idea. If people in Zarrug, Mere's central city, were already not supportive of me, what would someone from a remote village think?

Seconds seemed to turn into hours, and I didn't know what do to. Should I just run? I looked over to the door; if I stood up now, there was no way he could catch me. I was about to stand up when he finally spoke again, "I didn't know there were people like me," he said, and I sat down again. "Of course, there are," I assured him, and tears started forming in his eyes. "I always thought I was weird yea the town accepted me, but it just felt like I had a weird disease or something I don't know." I was about to cry too when he told me, "I get what you mean." I told him.

We just sat there in silence for a while after that. I didn't know what to say, and neither did he. But there was an unspoken agreement between us that neither of us had to feel alone anymore. 

(886 Words)