Blue Moon

Chapter 4

"Rising over the horizon, painting colors in my sky."

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A city of lights and tall buildings are blurred with constant rain. It never stops, it only slows, or lightens to drizzling. It pours over people's backs and smooths over concrete. The sun never shines, clouds never part, and the city never sleeps. Constant lights blinking, screaming at you to just look. People are like waves from the ocean and one stone heart weaves through them as if a sick fish. This skin is pale and tinted a light blue from the cold. Hickory eyes and curly hair to match droop. He has plain sleeveless clothes. Most eyes are glazed over and don't even notice a stone heart, that looks like a human, shuffling past them. He runs into just another man.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" The man shouts, him and his lackeys turn around to face the stone heart. The man is taken aback from the human for a moment, but the stone keeps walking on aimlessly. The man grabs his shoulder and spins him around. "I'm talking to you pal! You gonna' say you're sorry!" The fear wiping away.

"I'm sorry," his voice cracks, sounding as if it's the pitter patter of rain.

"That was oddly... Pathetic and sad for a human," the man says and the other men around him crackle. "How about you do us a favor, and then we call it even. We can even buy yah' a drink afterwards." He wraps an arm around the stone heart and leads him to a convenience store, his buddies not too far behind. "Now I want you to lock the employee and everyone out of the convenience store. Then I want you to let us in through the back door." His grin grows wide. The stone heart stumbles in.

"Everyone leave." His voice dances through the air and into the minds of the few people in the store. They all walk out in a single file line then the stone heart locks the door. The men stand there stunned. One of the men pushes the group forward, they make it to the back where the stone heart stands waiting for them.

"Wh-what was that!" The man cheers. He grabs the stone heart with both hands and shakes him excitedly. "You were amazing!" He turns to his group. "Quickly grab everything you can." The man and the stone heart move out of the way so they all can rush in. They grab food and stuff money in their pockets and then run for it. The stone heart follows after being commanded to. "How about' you join our gang? We would love to have someone like you." He smiles maliciously and shouts over the wind in their ears as they run away from their robbery. When the stone heart doesn't answer he says "come on, just say yes. It will be fun!"

"Yes," the stone heart says plainly.

"That's the spirit!" He ruffles the stone heart's messy sopping wet hair.

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The stone heart knows nothing, just like all the others he hasn't met yet. The heists get bigger and more common and deadly. So many innocent people are dead just by a few words from the mouth of the stone heart. And he doesn't have a clue. He doesn't have a choice.

Today is one of the few days they do nothing, leaving the city untouched, but leaving the citizens uneasy. Will there be anyone left if they keep doing what they are doing? The stone heart sits in the corner because he is told to, so he does. Like he's always done. Although he isn't sure when always was. When did it begin? How long has he been doing this?

"It's creepy, can't we just keep it in a different room or something?" One of the men asks.

"He's a part of the crew and does most of the work." The leader says, slapping the other man on the back of the head.

"He's practically a robot, he only does what he's told."

"Just tell him to walk around a bit and then come back for dinner or somethin'"