Astoundingly Outcasted

Chapter #10; Leila’s Little Light

Once again, Leila dragged herself, maintaining a stoic expression on her face, only this time she was dragging behind her the dull bronze sword she had used against Aibek the night her world came into a...multiple... new perspectives. The recontre itself was grueling and he had to crash the event, he just had to. Having to deal with him right after such squandering activities had exhausted her.

Unfortunately for her, the situation from this point forward could be and most likely would be burdensome for her.

Around the corner of another little alley, which seems to be a popular choice for misfortune to rear its head from, Odin’s scythe came creeping up to her.

Closer...

Closer...

Closer...

Slowly, it approached just a few feet away from hers, and then all of a sudden, with such velocity and acceleration, the blade scooped her off her feet, sending her flying onto the bare concrete. She turned, to only catch a glimpse of the scythe’s handle as it disappeared back into the same backstreet. She was already irritated and would’ve murdered someone, figuratively, if they so much as tried to boil her blood at even a Fahrenheit higher.

Furious, she gave chase to the murderous weapon, dropping hers onto the pathway for anyone who wanted a cool sword to just scoop up. Unfortunately, in her fury, she failed to realise that controlling the scythe was actually a dark, twisted vine. If not for Aibek, this would’ve been Adawna’s little prank after she eventually gained powers of her own.

Funny story actually, if one goes through Adawna’s old diary they would have found out that she was plotting something strangely similar to this.

Where was this going? Oh yes.

She followed it back into the backstreet, only to find it lying on the ground in a puddle of murky water. She grumbled to herself as she looked around to see where he’d run off to.

She gently lifted the scythe, mostly ensuring it maintained its features, while still investigating the gloomy grey and damp corner.

Doing so, she subconsciously took a few steps towards the little puddle. Most people would be worried about getting their shoes or feet wet, but that was the least of her concerns.

As her heel touched the surface of the water, the water gave way and fell to what sounded like a decent height. (How... how can height be decent?... Water fell from the ceiling to the floor of a moderately-sized room I guess...)

Leila soon found herself dangling, gripping what was the outline of the puddle. She glanced down to see that a truly grotesque-looking carpet, with much scattered on it, was just a few inches underneath her toes.

She hopped onto a damp section and started examining it. It was pinkish-red with loopy white lacing on the edges on top of a light chocolate brown. the rest of the flooring was an unusual orange-yellow. It was quite peculiar and interesting to look at, perhaps not in all the best ways. The whole scene was quite bright, and frankly, a little harsh on the eyes.

Behind the wet portion, a patch of the flooring had been completely burnt away. Ahead of the aqueous spillage, there were many random trinkets to note, each denoting a different type of natheren in one way or another.

The water and the burnt patches were obviously for viperen and cobren respectively, Leila and Aibek. Closest to them were a selection of small leaves and flowers, for pythron and what could have been Adawna’s future. On the third point of the imaginary triangle was onyx dust used by mambers with green beryl dust used by anacondaers not too far for Odin and Sakin. Finally, just a little ahead of all those were diarond feathers for colourbirds like Melanie. One of them was customised to be used as a dip pen for communicating with the people around them, i.e. shields, i.e, Dolores.

Once again, it is important to note that there was only one of each at a time, which is why Ryeon’s case was even more puzzling than it should’ve been.

As Leila stood there, connecting the dots, she heard footsteps approaching from behind her. She jounced as the peppy, full-of-energy, middle-aged woman approached her.

Her hair was sparkling amber in tight curls wrapped up into a ponytail held together by a deep blue band. The loose strands had been brushed to a point that they were classified as wavy, amongst them a few of the strands were of deep green colour, but only on the left side. Her ears were what could be considered a mix of communicative-style butterfly ears and elemental-style elven ears. Her eyebrows were thin and strong, complemented by the bold lashes.

She was quite well-kempt.

Around her neck, on a thin, ebony string was what looked to be a green marble with a yellow, crystalline center. She was wearing what was referred to in the Pakistani community as a kurta. It was a dark teal with dull purple diamond lacing. The scarf resting on her shoulder matched the shalwar, which were of a beautiful blue colour. Gliding through the air, her steps carried the dull purple flats.

However, apart from the ears, most of these features wouldn’t strike as unusual, at least, compared to what is left to be mentioned.

Although her right eye was reminiscent of a coffee colour, the other was bright green with a slit pupil, like an actual snake. Accompanying these details splotched all across the left side of her face were patches of a colour similar to those prominent hair strands.

She looked at Leila with a patient smile, her fangs clearly showing.

“Ah, you’re finally here. You look tired, come.”

She glared at her with a face of confusion, squinting at her.

“You... you were expecting me?”

“Yes, yes, yes, of course you.”

She didn’t believe her.

“If you were expecting me, then tell me, what’s my name?”

Leila expected a blank face, an awkward silence, and an excuse.

“Leila. Leila Ma’a. Viperen and third-best fighter at Comradery High, second-best now that Aibek’s gone.”

Her frown flinched momentarily. She did not get the response she expected.

“How do you know that?”

She was still curious about her methodologies.

“Take a guess.”

Not many enjoy leisurely guessing on such serious subjects, especially after an exhausting event.

“... no clue.”

Her voice perfectly conveyed that.

“Do you at least know what a boen is?”

She exaggerated her words, making sure that Leila understood the weight of what the rest of the day could hold.

She squinted even harder at her.

She let out a deep, heavy sigh.

“I met with Adawna but never you…” she started.

“...it seems like I have failed to establish proper contact with you. Hopefully, you’ll do better than me.”

Leila slightly tilted her head to the side while still squinting at her.

“ I am Malam Yildiz. I have answers for natheren-related questions.”

She stopped squinting but still kept her head tilted. Malam sounded like she was tired of having to repeat this introduction over and over again. She started mumbling something under her breath.

“Made the natheren side of the web ‘cause I got tired of searching through all the scrolls and books falling apart.”

Oh so that’s where Dolores found out all that from.

She slightly nodded her head to the side, gesturing for Leila to come follow her. She led her down the carpet which, while ugly indeed, was strangely soft to step on.

“Where are we even?”

Though curiosity killed the cat, there was nothing remotely deadly down here wishing to harm Leila inquiring about the situation.

“We’re right under your apartment complex.”

Malam commented.

There is a sudden chill that runs down one’s spine when they realise that they have been unaware of something so close, that it was in their reach, but had never actively reached out for it before.

That is exactly how she felt finding out about this underground lair beneath her home, even more so recalling how Malam mentioned having met with Adawna but never her.

When did she meet Adawna? That girl never left Leila’s side, unless Melanie was there.

Looking up, she saw that the light, which was actually the sunlight for now, was coming from the outside world. It shone from little holes in the ceiling, the sight resembling a cluster of stars in the night sky.

The pathway was short and Malam soon turned into a little room on the corner with a pale, birch wood door.

It was lit up by a big corner window, out of which a gush of cool wind blew as soon as a side of it was opened. Underneath it were a series of stubby paper birch plywood armchairs, each with their own unique patchwork cushions.

On the side of the room adjacent to the door, there was a rose quartz kitchen slab, on which there was an electric kettle powered by a power bank, a plethora of ceramic cups, and a basket, full of different teabags, coffee and sugar sachets and bottles of colourful sprinkles alongside a glass jar, filled to the brim with cocoa powder. A stack of little boxes of hazelnut milk sat nearby.

looking at Malam’s face, one could tell that she was in a more serene place, joyous and free of grief.

She started brewing a sort of pewter and dove gray tea leaf and poured it into a cup before brewing another, which had a strong aroma of peppermint wafting through the room, and adding just a splash of it into the same cup.

She approached the chairs and gently patted one, asking her to take a seat. Once settled she handed Leila the cup.

She took a sip as she felt the warm tea going down her throat. It was both relaxing and energizing.

Malam took a deep, long breath and started.

“I built this room to be as comfortable as can be, right under everyone’s noses. This was where I talked to all the blossoms who had just discovered their new abilities. If they had any questions, I’d find the answers from the dusty old archives and call them back here. Unfortunately Dolores does all the explaining now and the web answers the minute queries.”

She leaned back in her seat as Malam’s tone grew serious.

“Tell me, Leila, how’d your powers get triggered?”

“Someone threw water on me... we. Aibek was with me. At first I didn’t care, but when I saw Aibek drenched I just... got mad, I guess.”

She narrated in a low, monotonous tone.

“Ah...Aibek. I’m truly sorry for what happened between you and him. He told me that you two were close.”

“Had you ever met him?”

She inquired as her voice raised to a higher octave.

“I had met with all except you and Melanie. I still wonder why I hadn’t contacted you before, especially since you’re so important.”

She emphasised on certain words to convey her regret.

Leila’s eyes widened as she perked up.

“Why am I so important?”

Malam breathed a deep, heavy sigh.

“I met Aibek just a few months ago. I asked him to call you here. He asked why and I told him that I wanted to personally train you both. I wanted either of you to take my place.”

She frantically got up and took a few steps back, dropping the mute orange cup onto the soft, elegant grey carpet. She thought her hearing was being messed with.

“I’m sorry...ME? I think I misheard you.”

“No. I said what you heard. I want you to take my place one day.”

She glared at Malam, incredulous.

“Why me? Why not someone responsible? Like... I don’t know... Dolores?”

She put her head down in disappointment, almost like she knew that this was going to be her first reaction.

Leila groaned in a long sigh, preparing herself for what was to come next.

“Dolores, while capable, is not supposed to be the next boen. You are.”

She had now adopted a more patient tone of voice.

“Why?”

“Because I’ve seen you, Leila.”

She knelt forward in her handicraft chair, placing a comforting hold on Leila’s hand.

“I’ve seen you through all the drama life has already thrown at you.”

“Unless you’re some sort of spy, you haven’t.”

She began, sniffling, the first of her tears falling as the endeavour threw the world’s worth of worries on her shoulders.

“But I have…”

She started sounding more and more desperate with every word she spoke. She stared daggers into Leila’s eyes... tried to. She turned her head away, refusing to make eye contact.

“When?”

She demanded, believing there was no way this could be the pure and utter truth.

“The recontre just now, the way you roamed the school halls alone, how Odin followed you around that one time…”

She slightly shook her head, her eyes burgeoning with tears.

“How?”

She was on the verge of breaking, anguished.

Malam got up and put a hand on her shoulder.

“All you need to know for now is that I work at your school.”

She led her to the door and tried to look her in the eye.

“Come again another time, that is, if you’re comfortable. For now, I think it’s best you get going.”

She wiped away her tears with her sleeve and subtly nodded.