Act Two: Guardianship...
In the eyes of Ryoku Dragontalen, we are in
Harohto Capital City, in the world of Harohto.
It is early afternoon
On November 7th, 2017.
Scene One: Becoming True
I glanced at Will, seeking his confirming nod before I slipped through the open wood door. He and Sira followed, my silent shadows.
The Registry was hardly what I expected. A maple wood counter sat at the other end of the room, where a friendly-looking young woman behind it gave us a practiced smile. Behind her stood several steel filing cabinets, haphazardly piled in tilting towers that practically swayed with the outdoor wind. I wondered if each file in those regarded another Defender like me. A few people sat at benches surrounding a table piled with reading material. With linoleum-looking floors and walls of maple, the Registry looked more like a dentistry office than anything. In fact, it almost looked like it was straight out of my world.
Will led me straight to the desk, Sira in tow. To my dismay, I still found my gaze lingering over Sira as she moved. Everything from the way she walked to the glint in her crimson eyes kept bringing my eyes back to her. I pictured that long scar snaking down her back. Since last night, I couldn't bring myself to ask about it.
The woman behind the counter smiled again as we approached. "Hello there," she greeted us. "How may I help you?"
"We are registering a new official Defender," Will spoke for me, "and his two Guardians."
I still found the titles unnerving. I'd been taught to speak my title whenever I was asked my name, but it still felt like I was introducing someone else, or merely playing a role assigned to me. Then there was the part about Will and Sira becoming my Guardians. I tried not to pay much mind to the title. Guardians were supposed to be the designated protectors of a Defender. Seeing as we were both accustomed to a different world, Guardians were meant to guide and protect Defenders as we set out to protect the spirit realm. The large assumption was that, by protecting this world, we protected our own as well.
Of course, I had my own reasons for entering this life that seemed to differ from many other Defenders, causing me to set out in search of Chris Olestine and develop these strong bonds with my newfound friends. As a Defender, though, registering meant I was obligated to stop and help any in need. It also gave me certain rights above the average spirit or spirit-born, which extended to include my Guardians. That included being able to have them, of course, and for them to act in my stead or on my behalf. It also included the benefit of requesting aid from any, be they spirits, spirit-born, kings and queens, or soldiers.
"Alright," the receptionist's face turned from mock delightful to businesslike in an instant as she rummaged through her desk. She pulled out a couple documents and laid them on the table. "Who's the Defender?"
"Me," I replied. It took me a moment to realize she was asking for something a little more specific. "Uh, Ryoku Dragontalen."
The woman nodded, scribbling madly on the paper. Considering I'd only given my name, I felt she was writing a lot more than that. "Any other Defenders in your family?"
I vaguely realized she didn't have the usual Harohto accent, but her question threw me off. "Not that I know of." It didn't matter much, I thought. None of them was around anymore.
She only nodded. After another minute of scribbling, she pushed my document aside and stamped it once. I saw the page briefly. Somehow, she'd produced a rather lifelike sketch of my face, and stamped it with black ink labelled 'Defender'. The rest was practically illegible. "First Guardian, please."
"I suppose that would be me," Will mused, polite as ever. "William Jesse Ramun."
She kept on scribbling. I watched with fascination, wondering if she'd be able to read this later. "Alright. What is your home world, Will?"
For a split second, I wondered why she hadn't asked me. Obviously, I could only be from one place. Any specifics, like my country, province, or even city, seemed irrelevant.
"Capital of Syaoto," Will replied. The woman went on scribbling. As soon as she pushed that page aside and stamped it with 'Guardian,' Sira started.
"Second Guardian, Sira Midati Jessura." She smirked, letting the woman's frenzy grow as she struggled to finish the paper. "Orden. The Capital."
For a brief moment, I thought I saw a reaction in the receptionist's eyes. Fear, and possibly alarm. Before I could be sure, her head lowered again, and she finished Sira's document just as quickly. She stapled all three files together and bound them with a string of red tape. Then, she held the stack over an empty stack of papers, and she ran her hand over them in a fluid motion. Her fingers glowed, then she removed the first stack and handed us the other stack. I stared at it in surprise. It was an exact copy, possibly produced better than a machine might do.
"You may need these documents to prove who you are. If they're lost, you may get another copy at any Registry located in any Capital city, or any city that acts as a Capital might. Your information will be readily available in the system for all of time until you depart from these lands altogether. Perhaps even beyond then."
I handed the documents to Will, who safely stowed them away in his bag. I probably lost my belongings too often to try to keep them safe. While he put them away, the receptionist handed me a small red stone, shaped similarly to the circular band around our documents. "This device is for registering new Guardians. Merely have them hold their hand over the stone and state their name, title, and home. Next time you go to a Registry, you can claim the official documents if you so wish."
I took the item in reverence. There was an item for this? "Thank you," I told her, surprised.
"You're welcome," she told me with a smile. "That's all you'll need. You're free to go."
I smiled in reply, having assumed this would take longer. However, as Will and Sira made to turn away, I stopped and turned back to her. "Are you... able to find people?"
She looked bewildered. "Locate? That's distinctly possible, as long as their world has a Registry. It also may not be perfect, depending on the world and their technology, but we do keep some records in many worlds. What is the name?"
I pictured his face in my mind, as clearly as I'd seen him when he first appeared in my world like a ghost. Jet-black hair, with olive skin and a delicate nose. The boy who asked me to save him, but deigned to tell me later. Maybe, I hoped, he could help me find my sister.
"Chris Olestine."
"Okay," she replied cheerfully, and turned to a niche in the wall where I was surprised to see a computer. I wasn't sure whether it was a quirk of this world, or whether the Registry was some sort of hole in the world that ignored the regular cultures of it all.
"You think she can actually find anything?" Will asked quietly. I nodded hopefully. Sira seemed a little distracted, staring off at nothing away from me. She reacted oddly to the name the day before, I recalled. Did she know something?
The receptionist returned after a short moment. "I'm sorry; I cannot locate Chris Olestine at this time. Is there anything else I can help you with?"
I felt stunned. She couldn't find Chris through an apparently detailed system? It had been five days since I last saw him, but I knew I still had some time before things went south. Did they catch him reaching out to me? Did they already carry out his sentence?
"Is there anything in the system about him?" Will asked on my behalf. "A homeland? Anything about him whatsoever?"
The receptionist frowned studiously. "If the man does exist, then it's not within our systems at all. Are you sure you have the correct name?"
I nodded numbly. Will cast me a glance. "That will be all, then," he told her. "Have a good day, madam!"
The woman simply nodded in response, lowering her attention to other documents on her counter. Will gently coaxed me to turn away. There was nothing else we could do here.
When the three of us turned away, though, something else caught my attention.
A large brown board hung on the wall, labelled at the top with black letters declaring 'Hunts.' A mix of portraits and writs scattered all over the face of it, some overlapping, and in no particular order. Each portrait declared a hefty price in gold.
What stood out about it, however, was a poster right in the middle of it all: a rather lifelike sketch of my face next to one of Kioru. Next to the pictures was written '12 million gold coins.'
"What is that?" I asked hollowly.
The receptionist answered my question, though I wasn't sure she saw why I asked. "That is a bounty board, extended for use by Defenders and other world-traveling folk. Normally bounty boards are used exclusively within a world. This one spans all worlds and is accessible to any who cross regularly. People all over the worlds report identities of people or monsters needing to be hunted, captured, or killed. Defenders, hunters, or simply travelers can tackle the challenges for rewards directly from the commissioner, and sometimes from the government of a world.
"If you wish to take on a hunt, you must report to the commissioner directly to gain first seat on the respective hunt. Return with proof of the deed, and the bounty is yours."
Sira and Will stood like statues on either side of me. Will's expression was unreadable, but Sira looked absolutely pissed. While they didn't move, I approached the board to examine the poster. Text under the illustrations of Kioru and I read:
Ryoku Dragontalen: Defender, no greater than twenty years of age. Green eyes. May be armed and dangerous. May have Guardians. This boy is a threat to the entire spirit realm and must be brought to justice.
Kioru Rasale: Rebellion leader of Orden. Armed and dangerous. White hair, violet eyes. Possibly travels alone. This man is a threat to the Royal Crown of Orden, and to the entire spiritual realm. Seen in collaboration with Ryoku Dragontalen.
Report to the Royal Crown of Orden to act upon this bounty. Ryoku Dragontalen must be brought alive. Kioru Rasale and any Guardians may be killed for additional bounty with proof of the deed.
-By the righteous decree of the Crown of Orden.
"Why are they hunting me?"
Will seemed oddly calm next to me. "I may have heard of this before," he said softly. "I apologize. Bounties decreed by royal kingdoms are made aware to any and all field soldiers. I'm glad Lancet did not realize who you were, for I did not connect the dots."
Sira strolled up and ripped the poster free of the wall. If the receptionist thought this was odd or unacceptable, she said nothing. "No need to worry about this crap," she muttered, waving the paper at me before she ripped it asunder. She threw the remnants in the trash, and came back shaking her head. "Damn it. If I knew what they were doing... if I was still connected to the army..."
"That's okay," I murmured, though my own voice sounded empty and strangely hollow. It was like the warning of my coming death made my soul retreat within myself. More importantly, though, I noted the part about Kioru. Were his words as false as the ones about me? If not, Kioru might turn out to be an extremely valuable ally – if I could only track him down without him running away.
"Twelve million," Will murmured, and whistled lowly. "It has sure risen since I last heard." He turned to see Sira's glare, and raised his palms in a friendly gesture. "Worry not – I do not heed the work of Chaos, no matter the bounty. Besides, Ryoku, we are your Guardians now. They would duly earn that bounty if they could get past us."
"Does this mean I'm being pursued?" I asked. "Hunters and soldiers actually know about this? What did I do? I just got here!"
"Do not worry, friend," Will replied. "Soldiers respond to the immediate threats." He gestured to another posting in the corner of the board. I looked upon a harrowing illustration of the Keeper, accurate even to the dust streaming from its cloak. "Bounties like this are their immediate concern. Monsters. Raider captains. Those with reason to attack their fine city. And for what they cannot do, they will post bounties here for possible Defenders and hunters, like us, to take up."
"Who's seriously gonna be threatened by that picture of you, anyway?" Sira said scathingly. "There's more fun things to hunt, and hunters are all about the fun. Check these out!" She scanned through a bunch of posters along the left side. Most detailed images of horrific monsters. On one, I saw a sketch of a spiny dragon with eyes that seemed to bore through the picture. Another showed a strange creature with antlers like a buck. "Figures none of these are in Harohto, either. Told you this is the Capital of boredom."
I looked at the poster of the Keeper. "Do we have to register to take up this bounty?"
"Not so traditionally, anyway," Will replied, looking over the poster quickly. "This one is abstract. People theorize that the Keeper has actually been in the Old Forest for a very long time, and is only riled up due to the raider activity and other happenings in the woods. It may be possible to defeat it, but perhaps not necessary. I was thinking on it while we traveled through the woods." He turned to me with an odd look in his eyes. "But we will get to that. For now, I would like to go visit the squad at the hospital and see about undertaking our mission. Do not let this bounty get the best of you, Ryoku."
"Yeah, you got us to look out for you," Sira agreed, grinning. "If any hunters are dumb enough to try you, they won't make it out alive. Trust me." Her grin fell, then, as easily as though it had never been there. "This does clear something up though, big time. I think we know where we're headed."
The smile I'd found at her confidence faded, too, for I knew what she meant. If Orden had reason to place such a bounty on me, it was unmistakable. At long last, I knew where to look.