Xander focused on the sound of the rain as he ran through the city, his bare feet bleeding as the suited figures chased after him silently through the city nightlife.
They followed between the pink brick buildings and under the different bridges which were filled with gargoyles which Xander swore were watching him.
Xander clutched a precious green gem in his hand as he traveled under the starlit sky, the spotlight seemingly on him. He smiled while running towards a huge and domineering wall. People spent their entire childhoods learning to get a Jade.
People inside the Zones had private tutors and private libraries dedicated towards receiving a Jade where they would go to the prestigious academies which he could only hope to imagine.
Once he sold the precious green gem in a black market, he and his sister could have enough to eat for an entire year. And all he had to do was sneak into an open carriage, ruffle through a bag, and find the beautiful and enigmatic Jade.
Unfortunately, he was spot leaving the carriage and that's why three masked men were chasing him throughout the city's alleyways.
They were each wearing a different mask--a bear, a wolf, and a mask respectively--with the wolf leading the menagerie. The engraving on their hands clearly showed that they came from one of the Zones too, and that meant they had Jades of their own.
"Give it up brat! You know you can't outrun us!" said the big man wearing a bear mask. His voice was gruff and loud as his brown hair was everywhere on his body.
Even through his mask, he could tell that he was ugly with his heavy breathing and the fat from his face leaking through the openings on his mask.
Xander smiled silently despite the number of insults running through his head. He didn't know his pursuers Specialties, so it would be better to err on the side of caution. Who knows if his voice could be manipulated somehow.
He continued to dart through the neighborhoods towards the Ring which separated the Zones from the Outskirts. No one, not even those famous Wunderkind, wanted to stay in the slums for that long. They were famous for being the antithesis of the kingdom's ideals; no rich brat from the Academy would dare to step foot inside.
We could buy some more food. Maybe a cake. Or, I could buy River some new textbooks so that she could be scouted out and head to an academy. She might even become a Wunderkind!
Xander daydreamed as he dashed through the concrete jungle as the number of magical lights began to dwindle. It meant he was getting close.
His bare feet were roughed up and his rags were drenched thanks to the rain, but he still couldn't get that stupid grin off his face as he moved his legs faster and faster. His victory condition was in sight.
"Boss, he's getting away."
The man in the rat mask spoke to the Wolf. Xander thought that Rat sounded like one of those old hacks that he had to deal with in the Outer Ring's black market with that screeching and nasally voice of his.
Xander continued to glide through the dark alleyways behind the stores which sold various magical devices which he could never afford in his life.
The Wolf grimaced as he looked ahead at the youth in front of him. He seemed like a wraith as his rags fluttered as he began picking up distance between them, the rain adding a shine to the figure.
Wolf looked at his subordinates and whispered something to Bear and Rat. They both nodded as the Wolf suddenly pivoted on his right foot and grabbed something from his suit pocket.
He dashed towards a nearby wall and seemingly ran up it as if it was horizontal until he was gone from Xander's sight.
That was bad. He began to move at full throttle blasting through the alleyways. Grimacing at how bruised his feet were going to get, he slammed his foot against the ground and launched himself forward towards his destination.
He was far faster than an ordinary human, and that was the factor he counted on.
Within the white wall was a tiny passage, tucked between the wall and a dumpster, which had just enough space for him to creep by. It was lucky that River discovered the passage. It opened up the pockets of the Zone's residents. They didn't need it anyway.
The two men ran after him and were close behind him, but were slipping on the wet sidewalks. That was essential.
He clenched the Jade in his hand as he fought for every inch of space between him and the guards, until he saw the entrance in front of him.
The missing pursuer still worried him greatly, but there was nothing he could do now. He would have to wait for a chance to escape his pursuers.
"You damn Outer scum!" yelled the bear as he saw the obscured youth pass through the opening and into the Ring.
Xander chuckled. Call me scum all you like. I'm still getting away.
I could buy that cake River always wanted. I could even pay all my rent to Lady Fortune like she's been nagging me about.
He smiled while looking around cautiously as he made his way through the tunnel in front of him. Unfortunately though, out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Wolf in front of him running down the brick wall just outside of the Outer Ring opening in front of him.
"Shi-" Xander started to say as he ran as fast as he could but the Wolf smiled sadly as he placed his hand on the ground in front of him with his marked hand touching the floor and a Jade in his left hand.
Xander caught him murmuring something unintelligible as he caught bits and pieces of the Wolf's chanting.
"Coefficient... point zero one... ravel..."
Just as he was about to lift his foot from the ground during his mad dash, he felt the ground below him almost seem to disappear. Immediately, his body lost all traction with the floor and he slipped and began tumbling down towards the nearby wall just in front of the entrance.
His head bashed against the brick wall, the wind knocked out of him and he thought he blacked out for a second. He tried to gather his breath and move again but every time he tried to crawl back to his feet, it felt like his skin would tear off.
The Wolf walked toward Xander slowly as he sighed for a second. He pushed his own Jade inside of his suit pocket. His suit looked like a shiny film was applied to it as the water droplets fell on him but didn't seem to stick right.
"You're not bad for a kid." The Wolf praised him in a weathered and tired voice as he knelt in front of him. "You're pretty quick. We could've used someone like you. But, I wouldn't deal with people like you. Your red eyes... someone must've done you dirty."
Xander bit the inside of his lip as he approached. The Wolf's Specialty was horrible if he ever wanted to escape him. Guess that's why he was the one that took the lead.
Now all he could do was rely on deceit. All he had to do was set it up.
Squirming, he smiled at Wolf who towered over his body.
"So, do you think you could leave me off the hook?"
"You got an awful smile."
The Wolf moved his hand over to Xander carefully and grabbed the stolen gem. Xander held on tight, struggling for control over the grip with a smile on his face, until he felt his hand lose all grip on the Jade.
"Some people like it." Xander shrugged, his body drenched with the rain.
He talked to Wolf again after a moment, "I got a sister to support at home. That Jade would've paid us off for a good while."
"I got a family too. I didn't climb up from this hellhole to give pity to kids like you." The Wolf sighed as he began to walk away, as he began to look at the slums around him which smelled of smoke and poverty.
He began to walk away with Xander's Jade in his pocket before saying, "It's just my job... You should get a real one yourself."
Good... Xander stared at the Jade in his hand carefully as hard as possible, remembering its every detail in its mind.
"Wait, just a second!" Xander said while looking at the back of the Wolf.
"Your Specialty, it's related to friction, right? That's how you got here so fast and ran up that wall. That's how you caught me too. You manipulated the ground's property underneath me to make me trip and fall. That's how you stuck to the walls earlier."
The Wolf stayed silent for a second before looking back at Xander. His red eyes had an odd shine to them as he tried to corroborate with the Wolf.
"Weird kid. You steal a lot of books or something?"
"It's my sister. She's the genius between us. She just rambles about the things she's learned whenever we're home together. I just listen to her."
Xander grinned greedily. The Wolf stayed silent. After a few seconds, he rummaged through his pockets before tossing three silver coins onto Xander's body.
"Take it. I don't want to see that ugly grin of yours again."
The Wolf said something under his breath and suddenly he could move freely. The ground beneath Xander seemingly felt smoother, allowing him to rise again.
He rose up slowly from his feet as he held his head in pain, wiping the blood off of his eyelids.
"Thank you, for these silver coins!" He said as he bowed down as a sign of respect.
"Why would I want to hear thanks from trash like you. Just shut up and take it."
The Wolf frowned and turned away. He walked away with an awkward pace as if he felt something wrong. Shaking his head, he pushed his hands in his pockets and left.
Xander laughed as he watched Wolf walk away back towards the tunnel. Xander limped against the castle wall until he slumped into an empty alleyway without any prying eyes to see him.
He took out the coins from his pocket and held them in front of him before he placed his index finger against his red pupils before saying, "Revert, these silver coins, [Perception], my Jade".
Suddenly, his eye felt an incredibly sharp pain traveling throughout his body as he said the final word. His eyes began glowing as he clenched his hand again. This time, instead of seeing the three coins, he felt a large green gem inside of his hand like had always been the case.
Feeling incredibly weak, he stood up again and pushed the Jade far into his pocket as possible, and walked home, his feet aching, head bleeding, and body drenched in water. He looked up with a smile on his face at the sky.
The stars were still shining bright even through the rain.