The City of Ionia

“Take care, ladies.”

“Bye-bye, manager,” Mia said with a friendly wave.

I gave a quick smile and left the cafe with Mia. We always walked home together since we lived in the same direction. My place was further than hers, though. It worked out since I didn’t have to worry about Mia not making it home safely. Not that Lyghtenberg was a bandit-affiliated town, but a few knuckleheads were running around pretending to be big and mighty.

The sun departed, illuminating the sky with a bright orange, almost the same as a tangerine. The color reflected onto the town, and a hint of orange touched the brick shops and cobblestone streets.

“Ah, tired. I wanna go home and plop on my bed.”

“Me too,” I said. I wasn’t actually tired. I agreed just cause.

“That was crazy, though. The three big guys. I bet they were lookin’ for a fight.”

I agreed again, but this time, I was more honest.

“But seriously, you’re a crazy one. Why in the world would you escalate the situation?”

“I didn’t escalate it. I simply cracked their ego.”

“Jill, I know men shouldn’t hit women, but I don’t think bandits care. You’re lucky you didn’t get into a fight.”

She got two things wrong. They weren’t bandits. They were wannabe bandits. And secondly, bandits somewhat do care. Take the first bandit I’d ever crossed, for example. He was by far the least violent bandit I’d met.

“Sorry,” I said. “I won’t put myself in that situation.”

“You better be,” she said. “Had me worried there.”

I quickly changed the topic since I didn’t want her to pointlessly worry about it. “So, how’s your child?”

“Rein is doing well. Gabe and I are trying to teach him how to walk. He can walk with assistance but falls on his own…”

She went on and on about Rein, her infant child. She spilled everything from learning to walk to waking up in the middle of the night to being a picky eater. Mia spoke of some interesting lore about her brother. Apparently, he’s job hunting to help Mia speed up the process of moving. He planned to hire a cheap babysitter to take care of Rein and work to help his sister.

Every time she spoke of her child and brother, a genuine smile ignited her lips. There was no malice or lies behind that smile. It was pure and delicate, like a blooming flower in a garden. One can only be captivated by its beauty.

“How good are you financially? Do you think you’ll be able to move anytime soon?”

She shook her head, vibrating her lips exaggeratedly. “No, no way. We’re looking at a few more years. I’m throwing a lot into savings, leaving us struggling to pay rent and sometimes food. It’s tough, but we can smile our way through.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course! I’m looking at the long run. Imagine in like ten years from now. Mia, the best hairstylist in all of Walisburg. The line extends from out the door. Every seat is filled with customers. Every—”

“I get it.” I gave her a friendly nudge.

She spoke about her dream more times than I could count. It was safe to say she was no different than me.

“I know, but let me just explain.”

She went on and on about opening a shop in Walisburg. I acted as though this was my first time hearing such a thing, even though she poured her ideas out every other week. I could probably recite her dream to some random person on the streets, idea for idea.

While she spoke, something behind caught my attention. I didn’t turn around, but my eyes glimpsed behind as my head turned to Mia, who was beside me.

There was one person all in black—almost a giant. Because of the hood, I couldn’t see his face, but I felt good about who it was.

The guy from the cafe. The wannabe bandit.

I didn’t spot his crew. Was he traveling alone, or were they hiding? If they were hiding, then where? The alleyways? No, most of them were dead-ends. Did they communicate in advance and formulate a plan? That couldn’t be since they couldn’t know where we went.

Whatever the case, we were being followed. My goal now was to hurry up the pace and make sure Mia got home safely.

“Jill.”

“Y–Ya.”

“Do you want to come over for dinner? I’m making chicken and carrot soup.”

It was a tempting offer, but I had food at home. I would have to trash it if I didn’t eat it today. I didn’t want to do that.

Besides, I wanted to confront the wannabe bandit once I dropped her off at home.

“Not today. Maybe some other time.”

She smiled. “Sounds good. Just let me know.”

“Of course.”

We spoke for a little longer until we reached her apartment complex. It was a three-story tall building with windows either open or covered with blinds. The outside consisted of wood painted smooth brown. Though it wasn’t tall, the building was slightly on the broader side. It housed over thirty resident homes, and location-wise, it was excellent. A food market was down the street, and the city center wasn’t far.

“See you Tuesday. Bye-bye, Jill.”

“Take care, Mia.”

We exchanged hugs and parted ways. I watched her enter her complex and breathed a sigh of relief. Now that I knew she was safe, I continued silently walking forward. The streets weren’t busy. They were empty. Was this because of the Walisburg event?

Probably. The Walisberg event is an annual event in Walisburg. It’s a huge celebration where outsiders from different towns and cities get together. There was everything: dancing, music, games, street performances, and food carts. At least, that’s what Mia told me a while back.

I continued walking like a normal day with nothing unusual happening. The wannabe bandit followed. The town was so dead I could hear his heavy footsteps. I couldn’t point out the other two, which got my head scratching. Were they invisible? Levitating, perhaps?

Close to my apartment, I made the business decision to turn around. I didn’t want them to know where I stayed. Since everyone had left town, a fight on the streets wouldn’t be bad, though I didn’t want that to happen.

“You’ve been following me for a while. Do you have anything to say,” I asked.

A mask covered his potentially hideous face. I could only imagine how he looked when I turned around.

“You have some guts talking to me like that,” he said in a heavy, raspy voice.

His voice must be drier than a land vacant of rain. It was almost like his vocal cords sliced his throat with every word. It was deeper than the roots of a tree and heavier than the tree itself—a voice I’d never heard.

Back at the cafe, I didn’t realize how terrible it was. I’m surprised I noticed this late.

“I don’t like having my time wasted. If you want to talk, then talk.”

“You sure are looking for a beat-down.”

And just like that, his friends appeared through the alleyway next to him. How did they get there? I thought they were dead-ends.

Was my brain playing tricks on me? Did I not recognize them?

Regardless of what it was, it didn’t matter. Three men the size of boulders shuffled their way to me. Placing one foot in front of the other seemed like a workout for them.

They weren’t overweight. Muscular in a burly sense. That was the perfect way to describe them.

“Watch who you’re speaking to.”

Did they all have raspy voices that were incredibly difficult to understand? I had to focus all my attention on my ears to understand word-by-word.

“So, do you guys not have anything to speak of? If that’s the case, I’ll get going.”

“You’re not going anywhere,” said one of the wannabe bandits. “You disrespected me. No one does that without facing the consequences.”

“Ooookaaayyy then. And what consequences are you speaking of?”

“Our fists implanted into your face.”

Judging by their swaying bodies, I could tell they had never been in this situation before. One repeatedly tapped his foot, the other fidgeting a little too much. The only one holding a solid stance was their leader. Or at least he was their leader.

“Oh, so this is when you hit women in private. No witnesses are around to expose you, so this works in your favor. Kind of embarrassing, though. Ganging on a lone woman. It doesn’t get more pathetic than that.”

“Watch your tone, bitch! Swear to God, I will decapitate you!”

“Well, let’s not go that far. I say we talk things out. I really don’t feel like throwing punches. I’ve been on my feet all day and just want to rest.”

The one on the left clasped his fists together. “You will rest after this punch annihilates your arrogant behavior.”

“I wouldn't say arrogant. It’s more…hmm… I can’t think of a word.”

He took several steps closer and pulled his fist by his ear. “Shut up, you little—”

“Hey!”

The man in front dropped his hand, mumbling something. I couldn’t catch what. I was somewhat surprised I even heard a mumble.

I turned to where the voice was.

He walked towards us.

“How dare you pick on a lone girl. Do you not have any pride?”

It was a regular-sized man. Not skinny, yet not big. No older than 21 and no younger than 16. Messy brown hair paired with hazel eyes. Those eyes shimmered with confidence. It was like hesitation was a foreign concept.

“And who should you be?” Asked one of the wannabe bandits.

“I was taught to introduce yourself before asking for names,” said the hazel-eyed man.

“You’re a cocky one,” said the leader. “Do you wish to be put in your place?”

The hazel-eyed man flicked his hair up dramatically. “Why punch a woman? Didn’t your mother teach you any better?”

“Bring up my mother once more, and you will die by my hands.”

The leader’s voice was deep with violent intentions. The mother's comment most definitely wasn’t appreciated.

“Apologizes for my carelessness. Now, would you please leave this poor woman alone?”

The temptation to throw a sarcastic remark was unreal. I forced myself to stay quiet even though it burned.

“This doesn’t concern you,” said one of the wannabe bandits.

“It does, though. If you dare lay a hand on her, I will unleash myself upon you.”

What did that even mean?

“Is that true? Well then, I guess we will have to find out!”

The wannabe bandit leader punched the hazel-eyed man right in the face. He stumbled, trying his best to stay on his feet. But one punch did it all. The leader grabbed him by the shirt and threw him into nearby trash bins. They toppled on him with bits of garbage sprinkling the ground.

I ran to him and sat him upright against a wall. Unable to keep his head up, he dazed in and out of consciousness.

I clicked my tongue. This was my fault. I was having too much fun toying around, leading to someone getting injured.

No blood. That was a good sign. His head must’ve taken quite the beating. Speaking from experience, it wasn’t fun being thrown into things.

I whispered in his ear. “Sorry.” I didn’t know whether he heard or not. It didn’t matter.

I stood, turning around to the wannabe bandits, who laughed and high-fived each other.

“Fighting was the last thing I wanted,” I said. “I guess I have no choice. You hurt an innocent bystander. You’ll be begging for forgiveness once I’m done.”

They laughed even more, pointing fingers and cracking jokes. It didn’t bother me since the outcome was highly predictable.

“Let’s see. How many fingers do I break?”

In the end, I broke a total of thirteen fingers, give or take a few, and dragged their unconscious bodies to a nearby alleyway where the rats would take them.