Reign of Ruin | ONGOING

TWO

TWO
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When Akii awoke, it was to the slow stop of the wagon and voices near them. Alarmed and half-dead, Akii quickly threw a tarp overtop themself. Their body protested the harsh movement, but it was just in time, since soon after some of the merchants peered into the back of the wagon and began grabbing things. It was then that Akii realized how late it had gotten — the suns had retreated, and the three moons were scattered low in the darkening sky. The merchants must be stopping for the night, Akii thought. Based on scent and the voices, there were three of them. They listened to the casual conversation the merchants were having as the group unloaded bedrolls and food for the night.

"I reckon Madinat will be a success, yeah?" one deep voice was saying.

"Yeah, but Matahari 'll be the big one," a female voice replied, and she talked like she had a ball in her mouth that she had to speak around. They both talked with an accent; it gave Akii the impression that the group traveled from further south, possibly the Vil Queendom based on the thick gravelly tone and sharp words.

"No pain tryin' both," the first man replied.

"Haulin' all that stuff without killing the hisan 'll be harder than tryin' to catch a greasy wolo with your bare hands and comin' back scratch-free!" A third voice, male, chimed in humorously. His accent was so thick Akii could barely understand it. 'Your' came out as 'yer' and 'with' had no 'th' sound at the end of it.

"Shut your trap, Hallan, your negative energy is what's gonna make this trade fail!" the female voice exclaimed.

The third voice, Hallan, sighed, "Vilana, you know your witchy fai bullshit makes me uncomfortable."

That surprised Akii, because they preferred to think that their species was just ignored and widely unknown, and that no one would hate them for it because no one knew what it was.

"It's Fa'ii, you dummy, and thinkin' that what I put out into the universe will come back at me ain't witchy, it's common sense," Vilana huffed. The first voice, who was yet to be named, still hadn't spoken again.

Despite what they said about Sihirians being peaceful and optimistic, Akii had never actually believed that their energy would impact their daily life. They had gone along with it for the sake of the elders back in their village, and for the sake of their parents. When that all went away, so did Akii's fragile optimism.

"Hey! I ain't no dummy, dummy!" Hallan scoffed back. Vilana was starting to yell something in reply when the first voice cut in and began to scold them like a father scolded his children.

Villain apparently had the same thought. "Yeah, yeah, dad," she muttered.

It was nearly silent after that. The group must've been sitting around a campfire, or maybe they'd gone to bed already, but the fire was crackling and someone's feet shuffled near it. It was to these sounds, in combination with soft breathing and the chirping of the night bird, that lulled Akii back to sleep.

⊲♛⊳

Akii slept for an unknown amount of time. At least 2 days, because when they awoke the wagon was no longer crossing the desert but rolling down a wide dirt path surrounded by tall grass and full trees. Their ears woke first, the sound of wooden wheels going over rocks and idle chatter filling the dark world of dreams. Akii's eyes were next, opening to see the tan cloth stretched over the back of the wagon to make a roof. The sunshine blinded Akii despite the covering, and their eyes closed again immediately. They still couldn't feel or move their body — which should've concerned them far more than it did. When their body finally got up to speed, Akii noticed that their wound didn't hurt nearly as bad as it had — which, once again, should've concerned them. When they looked down, their tunic was glued to their abdomen with blood. That really should've concerned them.