The streets lacked the normal noise and liveliness of Leo's hometown. The shopkeepers greeted customers without a smile, not even a grin. They didn't frown, per-say, but they weren't smiling either; and for that matter, no one was smiling. Not the girls. Not the boys. Not the men. Not the women. No one.
For the first several items on the list, Leo bought a wooden crate with the money Raynark gave him. He realized that he'd have to haggle for the rest of the items on the list, so he made his way up towards the market that lay at the other side of the city. He was currently in the slums, and according to an old woman, who was sitting beneath the clouds, absorbing as much light as they would let through, she declared with confidence that the best market lay on the other side of the city and that anyone who bought food and materials from this side of the city was crazy and needed their head checked for demons.
Now, speaking of demons. Leo felt the presence of several, watching him, bearing their devil eyes towards his soul. Like before, they seemed to leave him alone. Every one of them slinked and crawled on all fours atop rooftops and between alleys. They resembled rats, if rats were four meters tall and had human-like heads with curly ram horns. What surprised Leo the most was the fact that most everyone in the city ignored their presence. Everyone he walked by in this prairie city on a hill ignored the demons, their presence, the very death the demons emanated from their grotesque bodies and lanky limbs. The townspeople emanated traces of death as well... But soon. But soon, Leo noticed another presence, a glimmer of life he couldn't feel in the rest of the townspeople. He felt life emanate from her in a way he hadn't felt before, because he was too focused on the demons from the time he woke up 'til now. It was Elizabeth.
He wondered why she was here and what her purpose was in coming, but nevertheless, her light comforted him, and it made him wonder, wonder about the true meaning of Solomon's declaration.
"I will destroy this city in five days," he said.
Leo didn't know how, but Elizabeth seemed to be related to this destruction even if she wasn't explicitly apart of Solomon's plan.
So, Leo disappeared.
He disappeared from Elizabeth's sight so to speak, and he reappeared behind Elizabeth, who's peeking head wore a face of shock and astonishment. Leo tapped her back, and she screamed, but soon covered her mouth.
"Why'd you do that?" Leo asked.
"The Demons..." She said.
"What about them?" he said.
"I don't want them to notice me."
"Huh?" Leo said, "I don't understand. Don't they already notice you?"
"No, a little, but no..."
Elizabeth clutched her dress with her small hands, and her mouth scrunched with anxiety. Leo didn't want to make her any more uncomfortable than he already was, so he stopped prying despite the curiosity that welled up inside of him.
"Want to come with me?" he said.
"Sure!" she said, her face brightening by one-hundred degrees.
So, the two made their way towards the far market on the other side of the city. It was a large city, so Leo decided to get the answers from her after she trusted him a little more, after she came to know him a little more. He wanted her to trust him. She had answers he was seeking. Answers he desperately needed.