Imperial Orders

♕The Boy♕

A/N: I warn you, chapters here will be shorter than those in my other works. This isn't intended to be as long of a work as, say, Glitches, since it's being written for a contest. Nevertheless, I hope you're enjoying it so far! Make sure to click that little star in the corner...it's more important now than it's ever been before!

Also, thanks to harukamii_ for this beautiful cover!

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Tuofah had been following the boy for fifteen minutes. He led her wordlessly through the streets, displaying incredible alertness as he moved from path to path, forcing Tuofah to speed up to a light jog to keep up with him. She nearly ran into a man, two dogs, and a telephone in her attempts not to lose the surprisingly fast boy, who ran in a random, haphazard fashion. 

"Where are we going?" she asked for the millionth time, frustrated by the boy's enigmatic nature and annoying smile. "And who are you?" 

"For our purposes, my name is Arafien Tyllanie," the boy replied, finally coming to a stop beside Lake Nardysk, the city's largest water source. He waved his hand in the air, scaring away the ducks that sat on the dock in front of him, before approaching the line where wood met water. He leaned over the rusty, iron railing, gazing into the murky waters of the lake. 

Tuofah rushed along the dock, finding herself beside him. She couldn't help but laugh at his apparent stupidity as she watched him trail a long, pointed finger across the surface of the lake. 

"Arafien Tyllanie? As in Crown Prince Arafien Tyllanie of Homina? Is there a name that's more obviously fake than that?" she snorted. 

"There's more to it than you think, Tuo," the boy smiled mysteriously. 

"Tuo?" Tuofah frowned. 

"Yes," the boy nodded. "I'm an Auricle. I can feel sound. I give people the names that feel right to me. You're Tuo." 

"Alright, Mr. Auricle," Tuofah rolled her eyes. "What do I have to do, and what's in it for me?" 

"My friends and I are going to Relorio," the boy explained. "We need a good Tactile on our ship to take care of maintenance and any little mechanical problems we might run into. The total trip- which includes travel time both ways and our stay there- should last about two months."

"Two months away from my shop..." Tuofah trailed off, shaking her head. "I don't think so, Your Highness," she said sarcastically, poking fun at his choice of a false name. 

"I'll give you more than you could make from your shop in two years," the boy laughed. 

"And how much would that be, exactly?" 

"One hundred thousand Marks."

One hundred thousand Marks. 

The number echoed through Tuofah's head, instantly turning off her better judgement. One hundred thousand Marks was almost five years of rent, and a lifetime of food and water. One hundred thousand Marks was college tuition: a chance to become a proper, trained Tactile and earn the respect that a Gifted deserved. 

"I'm in," Tuofah smiled. The boy, in his scruffy pants and button-down shirt that was missing most of its buttons, certainly didn't look like someone who would have one hundred grand just laying around. Then again, people were full of surprises. 

"Good," the boy smirked. "Peenutz!" he called through cupped hands. There was instant movement in the bushes along the dock. Tuofah whipped around, just in time to see four scrawny kids jump out from within the foliage. They stood in a rigid, militaristic line before Tuofah, as the boy looked them up and down. 

One of the kids, who looked to be the youngest and couldn't have been more than five feet tall, stepped out of the line and saluted the boy. "Peenutz, at your service, Captain!" 

That was when Tuofah lost it. She looked first at the tiny girl and then at the boy before bursting into uncontrollable laughter. 

"Does our operation look like a joke to you, Miss?" The boy gave Tuofah a scowl so deadly that she instantly fell silent. 

"That's what I thought. Now, meet the Peenutz: Koot, Nut, Dot, and Fish," the boy said, pointing at each of the four kids in turn. "Peenutz, meet Tuo. She's going to be our on-board mechanic for the next two months." 

"For the last time, my name is Tuofah!" 

"At least that jerk didn't name you Nut," the little girl spat. She looked Asian, and couldn't have been more than eleven or twelve years old. I found myself wondering what a girl like her was doing with a crazy guy who thought he was the Crown Prince. 

"Silence, Peenutz!" the boy barked. "Return to your positions. Tuo, you are permitted to go back to your shop, close up, and get anything you might need for the trip. I'm expecting you back here at five o'clock sharp this evening." 

"So soon?" Tuofah raised an eyebrow. She had expected a much longer window to pack her bags and inform her mother of the situation. 

"Yes. One thing you'll learn from experience is that around here, I'm the one who asks the questions," the boy said firmly. "You may be asked to do some things that seem suspicious to you, but it's important that you don't get too curious, or your money's gone. Got it?" 

"Sure," Tuofah rolled her eyes, turning around as she walked away from the dock. This was definitely going to be an...interesting experience.