❝how do you kill a monster without becoming one?❞
In the last city ruled by man, fish soar in the skies above and monsters lurk in the alleys below. Ten years ago, Jase lost both his legs and his mother to one such monster. However, tragedy couldn't...
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Kova pressed a glass of water to his lips. He was hungry and annoyed that the stupid human gods had prevented him from eating. Not to mention Jase and how he kept insisting on information about the Great Mother. He was almost as bad as Huraira. Kova had hoped he could just brush it off and Jase would forget. But he didn't. It shouldn't have surprised Kova as much as it did. Once Jase got something in that thick skull of his he would never let it go.
"I can't believe Huraira would just leave like that and with her dad of all people," Jase said, frowning. "I hope she's okay."
"Ka, she will be fine," Kova said. "She is strong. And bīipta."
"A new one," Jase hummed. "And what's that word mean?"
"It is opposite of līla."
Jase nodded, but he didn't seem to understand. No point in explaining. Kova got to his feet. If he wasted too much more time in here Lilja would get upset with him. He needed to make his way back - back to the gardens to keep watch.
"Where are you going?" Jase asked, wheeling in his chair to catch up with him.
"You want to know my god, chē?"
Instantly Jase's entire face lit up. His eyes - which were such an odd color, golden yellow like guushion berry - practically glowed with excitement.
They left the building for the rose gardens. The gardens weren't particularly crowded, but there were still too many people around for Kova to be comfortable so he tugged Jase's sleeve leading him deeper into the maze of roses. Kova supposed that he might as well show Jase what he could do. Everyone else knew, so why shouldn't Jase?
Finally, they came to a small corner in the rose garden that was both large enough for Kova to work and secluded enough that they would not be interrupted. The dull sounds of people weren't nearly as loud and there didn't seem to be any scuffling feet headed in their direction. The music of the ballroom was just a faint hum and Kova doubted Jase's human ears were capable of hearing it at all.
Regardless, he allowed his grip to slip from the Jase's sleeve downwards. As he turned around, he bound their fingers together in a tight grip.
It wasn't that they had never touched one another before. Kova had carried Jase more than once when his legs had given out and his chair wasn't an option. This seemed different somehow. Perhaps it was the quiet of the garden or the flush of Jase's cheeks but there was a gentle intimacy between them.
"K-Kova?" Jase asked, his voice half breathless and half a squeak of terror.
"Let's dance," Kova said.
Jase opened his mouth, perhaps to protest something about the lack of music or an inability to dance, but something flickered in his eyes. Kova wondered what expression he must've been making to cause Jase's typically harsh features to soften in such a manner. Like butter, he melted, yet his grip on Kova's hand only became more firm as he nodded.
