The Flame Keeper

Chapter 6

My screams for help were muffled by the man's firm hand and nobody paid much attention; they simply couldn't. All I saw was a whirlwind of people and noise as I was dragged to the side of the road and into an alleyway. I clawed at the hand clamped against my mouth, trying to free myself, but it was in vain.

The man retained his persistent grip and glared at me. "Feisty, I see. Well, my fist ought to teach you a lesson."

His fist towered over me and I kicked and squirmed, but I was going nowhere. I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the moment when his fist would meet my face... but it never came.

The man gave a high-pitched yelp and his grip loosened. A thud, then what seemed like punches being thrown. I slammed against the wall and gasped for air, my eyes bursting open. The man took a step back in the alleyway as he blocked a punch from... the stranger. What was he doing here?

Never mind that, I told myself, still breathing heavily. I'm still alive and that's what matters. The stranger seemed to be gaining ground on the man, but the man was holding firm, parrying his strikes with only little effort.

"You!" The stranger whipped his head around. "Get out of here!"

I stood there, still in shock, and didn't dare move an inch. I should have listened to his advice, though, as during the precious time he spent warning me, the man's hands connected with the earth beneath us and shot a row of deadly spikes straight toward the stranger. Only his reflexes saved him as he dodged the onslaught of spikes, just barely.

The stranger shouted angrily at the man. "You know you can't use your affinity without express permission from the capital!"

The man only smiled grimly as he shot another blast at the stranger. "How would you know? And besides, I just need to get him. The capital has no concern for you. Step aside, and you might not get crushed by a boulder."

"The capital has no concern for me, huh?" The stranger smirked and held his hands behind his back. "Well, have a taste of this!"

The stranger's hands were glowing red, but unlike during the incident in the restaurant, it was more intense and I could almost feel the heat radiating from them. Before I could even brace myself for whatever was coming, a flash of light blinded me and I averted my eyes.

I turned around and found that the man was gone. Burnt to a crisp. The stranger held the flame for a few more seconds before withdrawing it, smiling sheepishly. "Heh, I don't even know my own strength."

His demeanor changed immediately, though, as he faced me with a grim look. "You have to leave. Heck, I have to leave, too! The constable's gonna be knocking the city looking for me."

"B-but why?" I stammered. "Can't I just stay in the restaurant? I promise I won't come out."

"No! Don't you understand the situation?" I could tell he was trying to stay calm, but the bulging vein in his forehead told me otherwise. "The capital will just send more agents and I can't protect you again. I can't risk them knowing I'm affiliated with you."

My mouth went dry as I struggled to take in his words. "But why are they after me? I don't understand."

"I don't either, " The stranger laughed bitterly, "but it doesn't take a genius to know that if you stay here, you'll die, or worse."

"Can I at least think about it for a few days?" I said meekly.

He just shook his head and pointed to the crowd that was growing at the front of the alleyway. He leaned forward and whispered, "No. Word travels fast. And I can't protect you if the constable arrests me. If you wish to live, meet me at the Traveler's Inn today at dusk, at the latest."

He patted me on the back and said, "C'mon, you already have enough attention on you. You should head back."

With that, he disappeared into the crowd. What was I going to tell Dave? I pushed the thought out of my mind and stepped out of the alleyway, bumping into Benjamin.

He seemed at a loss for words, stumbling over his speech. "W-what just happened? Are you alright?"

I shook my head. Benjamin had always been a great friend, but some things you just have to keep to yourself. "It was nothing, really. I just got caught up in between a fight."

"Okay... you know you can talk to me if you need to." He looked at me, concerned, but I just turned away. I couldn't look him in the eye, especially after downright lying to my best (and only) friend.

"Let's just go back to the restaurant," I said. The crowd of people had dispersed and it was an uneventful walk home, besides the many thoughts that bounced around in my head. What was going on? It should seem that such a simple question should have a simple answer, but no. If I could only just go back to the restaurant and forget about everything...

The more I thought about it, the more my frustration built until the point when I started feeling the heat radiating from my hands. Benjamin must have noticed, and he gave me an even more concerned look, which made me just want to shrivel up into a ball and die. He cared for me beyond what I could give back and I hated him for that. Not that he was a bad person, I just wanted to be left alone. Nobody would understand, and the less I said, the better.

The familiar brick walls and the tattered tiled roof appeared around the corner (The Cozy Corner was a pretty fitting name) and Benjamin pushed open the door and I followed him in. We were closed today, but lively banter still filled the restaurant. Some of the staff had returned from the market and were chatting among themselves.

"Wallace, you got the lamb meat?" Dave's booming voice jolted me back into reality, and I stared blankly at my empty hands, still slightly red.

"Vernon was out of lamb meat," I said.

Dave sighed and rubbed his temples slowly. "Great. Toss me the silvers. You'll go back when Vernon gets his next batch of meat."

I dug my hands into my pockets, which were empty as well. My face paled and all the color drained from my hands as well. "I-I swear I had them! They must have fallen out..." The silvers probably slipped out in the alleyway, but there was no use in searching for them; they had been melted down to liquid metal and hardened on the pavement.

Dave gave me a strange expression and I felt déjà vu wash over me. "Wallace, I just... Can't you do anything right for once?!"

He punched the counter top and I stood there like a helpless lamb being stared down by a bloodthirsty wolf. "You scare off all the customers, and then you go toss our hard-earned money down the drain like it's dirt."

"I didn't mean to—"

"Then where's the coins?" And when I didn't say anything, he just laughed. "Do you know how long it'll take for us to earn that all back? Especially after you lost us all our customers." He spat the last word out so forcefully that a bit of saliva dripped down his mouth and landed on the floor.

I've heard people wet their pants when they're scared and I can finally say that it's true. Dave's voice slowly became ambient as I tuned all the hurt. It wasn't that his words were slander, they were true. And my heart throbbed because of that.

I could see Benjamin trying to calm Dave down through my tear-stained eyes, and I was glad someone understood me, but it didn't matter. Dave would never understand me, that my power was a curse. I laughed bitterly. Maybe the stranger was right, maybe it was time to leave. Trouble followed me wherever I went: in the restaurant, heck, the capital was coming after me for who knows what.

That didn't matter, though, as I knew that I could only run from it now. I fought back tears as I gave one last look at Benjamin and attempted a smile, a sad one at that. And then I pushed open the door and ran. Going where I didn't know, but away from the restaurant and all my troubles.