Raime dramatically sunk in an oversize armchair. The furniture wasn’t theirs, and neither was the apartment they were in but they still felt pompous frustration over how little comfort the chair offered. No matter. Flailing to exert themselves out of the chair, they kept the momentum going to leave the apartment they had entered only minutes prior. It had to be the tenth one they’d visited in a short amount of time. The impressive march to City Hall had taken in all of the Hull as well, but Raime hadn’t felt like following. Surrendering to the impartial nature of a riled up crowd seemed like the worst situation to be in currently, aside from working as a subsidiary to the Cors while hiding a most terrible secret. Raime chuckled to themselves, sliding down the building’s stairs to find a street. Their chuckle rose, turning into a full laugh as they found the outside again. Their laugh echoed for a bit, but ultimately met no answer, prompting them to stop. The short term embarrassment didn’t deter them from the great time they were having.
People had left in such a hurry noone had bothered locking any doors, leaving Raime to hop on through any door that crossed their path. The act felt perverse, but Raime didn’t feel the urge to steal or leave anything behind. They were only looking around, testing the strength of furniture here and there, brushing marble floors with their shoes to hear it squeak under their heels. Room after room, hall after hall, through doors and windows they flew as free as one without wings could be. Some taste of what their life could offer once the Capitán was satisfied with their work. It was still hard to them to know exactly what would be enough for her. They could dig into her sides again after bringing only an ounce of progress, but they still needed an ounce to show.
All lamps, all lanterns and garlands left behind and rising from the ground had taken a bright red. An antique color of mourning, taking over the city’s skyline like a wave of blood. Raime sat, as spread out as they could, alone in the Pride as it strode along on its own. They could hear fragments, distorted pieces of what was being preached down under the Pagoda but what they could actually see was too limited. Raime wanted to take full advantage of this fickle state the Hull was in. Reaching further out even some other districts would probably have this level of calm from being emptied of its people but the time they’d need to travel there was too valuable to waste. So, taking full advantage, they spread their legs as far forward as they could in the middle of the Pride. Their joints cracked satisfyingly, as long as they made an effort to not think about it, even the inside of their head had stopped feeling odd. The Pride rocked forward. An urge to dance overcame them but Raime had never danced before. There was noone around, once more they found themselves at the top of the world while the rest scurried below. Their limbs were unable to stay still. One heel tapped in rhythm against the floor of the Pride. Raime closed their eyes. Their head followed that soundless rhythm, that was all they managed to do, and it felt like enough.
Hopping from roofs to roofs, they zigzagged through the upper stratum. Running through all these empty apartments, it was as if everyone had been snapped out of existence. Would it be a good ending for everyone? A painless disappearance, as opposed to a slow death or burning alive from the Sun’s final embrace. Raime doubted their own powers would be that dignified. If it hadn’t been a pleasurable experience for them, they figured it couldn’t have felt better for those they took from. Even just rehashing in their head, the terms felt weightless. Whether it be Prys or those from the underbelly, their own ability to “take” felt vague and unfamiliar. To some extent, this is what prevented them from joining the march for the Old Man. It must’ve been a sight to behold from there, one that they’d never be able to see again. But if the Marrow Knight’s legacy was so instinctual they couldn’t remember having any control over it, they had frozen in place seeing such a massive congregation move as one unit. Better to stay away, better to have fun on their own.
When they’d gotten out of the Pride, Raime had loosely targeted their meandering to search for the Marrow Tree statue that rested somewhere in the Hull. Despite their great topographical memory, they still needed some trial and error to find the statue again in the Hull’s maze. They were guided by a faint memory, one of a clear view of the stars, buildings all around the statue curving outward to let them shine in, reflecting on the glistening surface of the statue. And there it was, significantly smaller than both the one in Freeway and the one in the Museum. Knowing what they knew now, Raime figured there would be some core memory that would be unlocked upon seeing the miniature trees but the sight still left them with nothing. Maybe they had a more complicated relationship with art than they thought. Walking around the statue, Raime found a slouched human sitting underneath it. Since it was the first one they’d seen around since the funeral march had started and that the human had their eyes closed, Raime looked closer to make sure they were still alive in the first place. The human opened an eye and caught their gaze.
“You robbin’ me, kid?”
“You got something to rob?” Raime exhaled, straightening their back.
The human straightened theirs in turn against the trunk of the statue. They were visibly quite old, much older than Tenor at least. Waiting for something else to happen, Raime stood their ground.
“One who would miss the Old Man’s pyre wouldn’t be above robbing for the sake of it.”
“We’re both here, dude, I’m not taking that on my own.”
“Ha!”
Hard to know whether the old human took it well or not but Raime decided to sit down as they did when San Carlo had started speaking in class. These old bones had likely nothing better to do than talk, even if they could feel bashful about it. They had walked with a fast pace for a while now and they only felt slightly sore from the effort, a break under the stars and red lights felt appropriate. They professionally exchanged names with a nod. The human was named Allen, not someone Raime would have remembered even if they had already met.
“I don’t rob by the way, at all, I keep my hands in my pockets,” Raime sighed, stretching their legs once more, “That aside, I’m wondering why there aren’t more like us just going about their night. I know how important the Old Man was, it’s basically as true as everything around me existing but… I’ve never seen him in my life, I know I’m not the only one!”
“And yet they all went. They all knew deep in their hearts that the reason they all lived everyday was thanks only to him bringing Volantis home. You seem to know this, then why are you here? Afraid of crowds?”
“Crowds should be afraid of me,” Raime snickered.
Allen laughed, from the heart this time. The atmosphere had warmed, red lanterns left to wander the sky merged with the stars above them, casting strange shadows all around.
“What about you?” Raime asked.
Allen looked up as well, visible decades of history etched upon his face pressured Raime into leaving him some time to think. The music had started, it rose from the outside of the Hull, crashing into its walls and pouring into the district from above. If Raime left now, there could be more apartments they could have time to slide into as long as their hosts weren’t home yet.
“I never expected to be here when the day came. When he first crossed the Grande Gate, followed by reactivated currents, he had already started merging with the city itself. It was as if the stones and steel had taken form to reassure us, to warm our cradle and promise the cold wouldn’t take us.”
“You were there?”
“I already had sired two children when the Mantra reached Freeway. I hadn’t come to terms with them not being granted lives that they could live. One day after the next we had been left alone and they would have died in my arms if not for…”
Allen perked up, shaking himself out of the reminiscence.
“You’re interrogating me, kid?”
“I am, that’s my job.”
“What kind of job are they giving the last generation that you need to dissect an old heart like mine?”
“Curious jobs.”
“Do you ever say anything true?”
“I’m a terrible liar.”
He squinted, to which Raime only shrugged. They couldn’t do much more if their interlocutor convinced themselves of a truth Raime couldn’t refute.
“Then I’ll get curious as well,” Allen replied, “How old are you?”
“23, maybe 22.”
Allen got visibly uncomfortable. Even if it hadn’t surprised him, Raime’s answer seemed to revive a wound.
“Can’t be 22… You know…”
“23 then.”
“Eh… Then, are you really interested in whatever we old fucks have to say? Even after all this time, it’s like I’m looking at my kids again, the world crumbling beneath their feet and all they did was look at me wide-eyed and smiling…”
“You’d have preferred if they cursed you out?”
“I would have understood.”
“I have a… weird parental figure who thinks kind of the same way. She would have rather I eat her alive than ever have to look at me in the eyes.”
“Interesting metaphor.”
“Right? I don’t know about your own kids but I’m just doing what I want, that’s the waters I was born in so I just let it ride. Maybe on another day we wouldn’t even have crossed paths but hey, we’re both here and there’s noone else around so why not ask?”
There it was again, the pity in their eyes. They couldn’t help it, Raime couldn’t even tell if they were aware, if there were a part of them that even attempted to repress the urge to bury their ego down under some cruel fate they were just unlucky to be born into. Nothing could have been done after all, none of them were to blame, but the back of Raime’s throat still felt bitter.
“Then…” Allen said quietly, “Ask all you want.”
“Hmm, did you know him? The Old Man?”
“Him? No, no, no. Noone knew him. The person that we could have known, the Old Man left him somewhere none of us know. For everyone’s sake’s, he changed, he had to change. That burden, the heart of hearts, Volantis… It was never meant for one to shoulder alone. It’s not something we were ever meant to understand. But he did, he did, he did.”
“Couldn’t he have chosen to stay closer to everyone? When I grew up I thought he was the one protecting us from the snow, way, way above. There couldn’t have been any harm in keeping himself more grounded, right?”
Allen shook his head vehemently.
“That day, when the Old Man lifted his hand and revived Kunlun by a single wave… You don’t expunge this image out of your mind and he knew as much. The first Pillars… they stood behind him, never stepping a foot near the divine shroud he clouded himself with. It’s… why I can’t go down. I can’t see that veil fall. If noone else will, you have to let me believe it’s still lifted, proud above the clouds…”
“Hey, I didn’t see anything either.”
It was as if Allen had lost himself again, his consciousness fighting on multiple fronts to shape a reality that would let him go on. Raime thought about asking him about his own kids but bit their tongue instead. Evoking them even in passing and reflecting them in Raime’s image had looked to be painful enough.
“What about Black Lake?” Raime lisped.
“What about it?”
“What’s the deal? It’s like the Old Man for me, really. Like I know it’s there and it’s been there for a while but the whole ordeal around their presence could be anything.”
“Comparing the Old Man to Black Lake on the night of his funeral… Such crude insolence proves to be refreshing.”
“You’re very welcome.”
“Black Lake already existed before I was born. A natural phenomenon for all we know. Water and condensation and the accumulation of garbage that people pushed as down as they could to pretend it would disappear. But the Hull’s bottom is and will remain intact, dutifully keeping all of Black Lake in its hold. I’m telling you, Raime, if we live long enough to see Black Lake lap at our ankles, then it will be time to leave our pride behind and slit our throats where ground is still dry.”
“Yeesh.”
Allen stood up, holding on to the Marrow Tree’s statue for balance and held his gaze on Raime who had naturally started lounging on the ground.
“It’s good that you are finding yourself. It’s what the Old Man wanted. It’s what he fought for. But don’t let reality escape your eyes, Raime, even if the Sun tries to convince us otherwise, the world we live in is all too real.”