Edward’s fingers brushed against the weathered paper. His eyes strained to see the pages; only a dim lamp-lit his room. The book was the work his parents had left unfinished.

Why? Why did it have to be him? He had looked over the journal and his notes. It was impossible, what they aspired to do was nothing but fiction. Even he was about to come to that conclusion before he took control. He shivered, he could still feel his fingers pressing into his. The boy felt ill.

It didn’t help that the majority of pages were scribbled out. Nonsensical images of people he had never seen before dominated a large amount too. The one that confused him the most was of a man who held an orb within his hands. What was an Eternal Individuation Field anyway? There was no context, nothing to signify how it related to anything. He stared at the drawing; one by one his fingers curled in, each nail dug into his skin. He hated that he wasn’t smart enough. He hated Master for putting him up to the impossible task, wanting to see him fail. He didn’t care about him. He hated him- Percival, too, and Eiden most of all.

Edward pressed his forehead against the desk. “Leo… where are you?” he asked no one. Why didn’t Master tell him his brother was alive? The only person who didn’t hate Edward.

---“Runaway.”---

“Huh?” The boy jerked his head. He looked around the room, his eyes failed to see the source of the noise. ‘Runaway?’' he breathed. Edward looked back at the book, could he run away? The last time he ran away Leo had supposedly died.

He thought back to the last time he saw Leo, the last time when anything made sense. His eyebrows pulled together, eyes widened. He snatched up the book, gripping it until his knuckles turned white. The binding started to rip apart, tears brimmed in his eyes. He couldn’t do it. No matter how much he wanted too, he couldn’t destroy it. He let out a frustrated growl, his hands started to shake. The boy threw it, smacking against the wall and falling into the corner; far away from him.

Edward stared at the corner, blinking back tears. His breath started to slow and the shakes ceased. The boy felt no better. He got up, the chair creaking from the shift of weight. The room was a wreak; books from the shelf laid strewn about on the floor, the bed permanently unmade. He crawled into bed, remaining on top of his covers. His head burrowed into the pillow. With one pale blue eye, he peered at the paint-chipped wall.

“Disgusting,” he remarked.

The boy laid there for what could’ve been seconds, minutes, or hours; he didn’t know. Edward failed to sleep for any of it. His thoughts refused to slow down.

Knock-knock-knock.

Edward craned his neck in the direction of the sound.

Knock-knock-knock.

Who was at the door? He frowned, the last thing the boy wanted was to see Percival or Master for that matter. He laid back down, maybe they would just go away.

“Ghost? Are you in here?” A voice called out. It was a girl’s voice.

The first name that popped into his mind was Alexa. A large TV screen with her pulling him out of Cornelia’s reach filled his memory. Edward frowned, she saved him. If she knew what he was like, she’d probably hate him like the rest. The boy sighed, it couldn’t be helped. He pulled himself out of bed; with heavy steps, he trekked to the door. His right hand grasped the icy doorknob and pulled it open.

His memory had not failed him, it opened up to the same ginger-haired girl with piercing blue eyes he had remembered. This time he noticed a faint scar that ran underneath her right eye. She wore a black long-sleeve turtleneck; its zipper ran from the bottom to the top. Percival wasn’t wrong about what he said at the Gala…

His eyes didn’t quite reach her’s. Edward’s left hand grappled the door.“Hi,” he said.

“Hi,” she responded. The girl bit her lip and stared, not at him, but at his bandages. Without warning two cold fingers slipped past the bandages, his bruised neck blossomed in pain. He squeezed his eyes shut, the fingers scraped against the wound. Before he could get his bearings the fingers retracted. “Your wounds are healing up nicely.”

Edward opened his eyes. He shifted his stance and turned his gaze towards his desk. “Why are you here?” he asked. The boy scolded himself and scowled. Why did he say that?

Alexa looked taken aback. She glowered at him, rage-filled her eyes. “Well, I just wanted to see how you were healing up. And to see if you were hurt again. I guess you are just fine.” Her words were wind cutting against his face.

The boy said nothing, his eyes stared at her. Words failed him. Questions abounded in his mind. How did she know he was injured? Wasn’t Percival the one who patched him up? What would the other say to her? He cradled his neck, he didn’t want to reveal what happened. But, he also didn’t want her thinking Percival did it.

The ginger pinched the bridge of her nose, and let out a sigh. “Just forget it.” Her eyes opened and stared directly into his. “Kevin and I are gonna get some fresh air,”

He blinked. “Why?” he asked. Wasn’t Cornelia hunting them down; it was dangerous to go out. It was dangerous for him to leave his room.

Alexa shrugged, “We might not get another chance in a few days to ever go out. And besides, might as well treat the person who saved me.”

What is in a few days? Neither Percival nor Master told him about anything. Was there going to be another attack? He didn’t know if he could stomach another one. He could.

“Well? Are you coming or not?” She crossed her arms and tapped her foot. Alexa stared right through him.

Edward swallowed hard, Percival and Master would find out. “Are you sure it’s alright for us to be out?

“It will only be for a few hours, plus its the dead of night. No one will recognize us,” the girl said without a shadow of a doubt. She stretched out her hand, insisting that he come. Images of his brother, then Master, flashed in his mind. The boy stared at the offer; it would be safer to stay. But… he would miss out on his opportunity to escape. Edward shifted his feet; they stood behind the line that divided his room from endless opportunity.

He grasped her hand.

***

He shouldn’t have been there. He shouldn’t have been with them. It was wrong. He was just running away again. The moon started to fall into the west. The boy passed through waves of light and dark; gold crests burned his skin, black troughs hid his quivering lips. The air was cool and the streets bare of life and trash. His eyes darted in every direction. He could feel Master’s presence behind him, but every time he took a look back, his eyes told him the contrary.

Edward shadowed the two older teens, always ensuring he was two steps behind them. The trio slinked alongside streets and alleys; doing their best to avoid police patrols, ergo main streets. Alexa refused to specify where their destination was. Judging by the stars, the boy deduced they were headed southeast. Leo loved the stars. The brothers stargaze for hours on end.

“That must’ve been one heck of a fall,” Kevin remarked.

Edward nodded, giving the two a painted smile. “Thankfully Percival was there to patch me up.” Alexa side-eyed him, much to his confusion. What did Alexa know about him? “So what mission is in a couple of days,” he pivoted off the conversation.

It was Kevin’s turn to look at him, exasperated, “Wait. Are you NOT planning this one?”

Edward shook his head, “I don't think Eiden would want me to help anyway.” Edward barely saw Eiden, and the times he did… did not end well.

The teen buried his face in his hands, “We are gonna die, aren’t we?”

Alexa smacked the dramatic teen upside the head, causing the sunglasses on his head to fall. The noise echoed down the passageway. “Calm down,” The girl kicked aside a can. “We've made it this far and haven't died yet. And we should definitely be dead.”

Kevin's hands flew up in the air, “What was that for? And emphasis on YET!” The teen scooped up the glasses and placed them back on his head, “These were expensive ya know.” The girl just rolled her eyes.

Edward raised an eyebrow. Her casual nature about almost dying multiple times made him sick to his stomach. The boy remembered that she, and Kevin for that matter, weren't good people. Eiden had hired the lowest of people. Why did he go with her?

Kevin rubbed that back of his head, “We are only here ‘cause Ghost saved our skin. Thanks again.”

The boy waved off the gratitude, “It was nothing. I was just repaying the favor.”

---“Liar. He saved them.”---

Edward swallowed the lie. It wasn’t a big one, Master wouldn’t think any of it, he justified to himself. He looked around, distracted. In the distance, he heard the sounds of people. The once pristine buildings in the Capital District were replaced by the urban decay of the South District. The alleyway was dark and littered with trash, buildings hid the moon, light from street lamps was sporadic at best. The group rounded a corner; at the end of the passageway, much to his terror, were a slew of people.

Alexa marched ahead, her expression was nothing short of pure confidence. Kevin gave her a concerned look. “It’ll be fine. Where we are going no one will snitch.”

Kevin made an unconvinced noise. Edward shared his sentiment, he grounded to a halt. “Ma-Percival doesn’t want me to be seen by anyone, except for you all.” Master’s grip tightened around his ankle, threatening to drag him back. As much as he hated the tower, running away to whatever criminal syndicate Alexa belonged to was no more freedom than what he had then. It was probably worse, Edward thought.

Alexa and Kevin both stopped and turned. The boy couldn’t make out either of their expressions. They were nothing but a shadow. The girl was first to act, she reached into her pocket; taking some sort of fabric out of her pocket. Kevin took off his sunglasses. Both tossed their own objects in sync at the child. Edward failed to catch either of them. Within ten minutes the ‘expensive’ glasses fell to the ground again.

“Bruh!” Kevin mourned over the fall.

Alexa shook her head, “Shut up. Don’t listen to him, Ghost.”

Edward muttered ‘sorry’ and picked up the items. The sunglasses were regular sunglasses, rather on the cheap end. The other was a red bandana with multiple vertical lines of varying colors criss-crossing each other. He put on their contributions; the dark became even darker and air didn’t come to him as easily. He gave the pair a nod and walked on, his nerves calmed somewhat with his additions. But, his hair was still exposed to the world.

Each step towards the crowd was harder to take. Edward stayed behind the teens, but at a much closer distance. The bandana failed to filter out the various smells that polluted the oncoming air. His nose crinkled at the smoke and other ‘tea’ odors.

Alexa paused at the corner, taking a headcount of Kevin and Edward. Without a word, she pulled the youngest in between her and Kevin. “Wha-”, he asked.

“Stay close to us,” she directed.

Edward nodded and pushed up the glasses. Without another word, the trio plunged into the street.

Every sense was attacked at once.

He wanted to stop right then and there and get his bearings, but Alexa denied this and prodded him along. Body odor and street food intermingled with which were dialed up 200 percent. Most people traveled in packs similar to theirs. Each group of people had something in common, from having identical hats to fabric hanging from their pockets. Some were wrapped in blankets, shivering against the side of buildings. Others loitered in alleyways and watched the passersby. People talked in hushed tones with the occasional shouting somewhere in the distance. Live music played, the boy couldn’t tell where it was coming from.

Edward tried his best not to look at anyone directly, it was difficult; he was transfixed on just how rough the people looked. Far rougher than anyone he had seen before. Hard lines decorated people’s faces, bags under their eyes. A far cry from those at the Gala. He was amazed by that in one alley there could be a group of men roughing up another, and then in the very next one, there was just a group of men and women laughing their heads off. What was even more peculiar was everyone who they passed seemed to take a glance at him and move out of the way. Did they know who he was? Edward ducked his head low concealing what he could.

Sirens wailed in the distance.

Alexa tugged his shirt sleeve, grabbing his attention. “We are almost there,” she stated. He traced the direction of her gaze to an inconspicuous building. The trio stepped out of the stream of people. Edward stared up at the building. It was a mere two stories tall. Its walls were an ugly whitewashed brick. Storm panels hid the windows. No discernible noise could be heard from inside.

Without warning a pair of men came out, they donned almost the exact same bandana he wore. Music escaped from the building; music he’d never head before. They shut the door and walked away briskly.

The sirens got closer.

Alexa walked to the door and knocked twice; Kevin and Edward stayed a few feet away. The two looked at each other, the realization where they were hit, Edward. Judging by Kevin’s expression, it hit him too. The bandana. The people moving out of the way. The music. Edward had only ever read of them in history books, they played a large part in the history of Carolina. Infamous for their influence over Fayetteville and their ‘Tea’ smuggling. Their blatant clashes with rival gangs.

The once closed vision slit slid open. A deep thick accent spoke to Alexa. Alexa responded in a similar accent. A cold sweat rolled down his face. He shook to the bone. All he could feel was fear. This was worse than the tower. “I knew Alexa was part of the Mafia. Didn’t think she’d take us here though,” Kevin said in a hushed tone.

The door opened in its entirety. A bald man with a short white beard greeted them with hard green eyes. His stature towered over his and Kevin’s. He stared right at the newcomers; his gaze took interest in the younger teen. Edward gulped, his brain screamed to run. Before he could commit to the idea, the sound of impending doom froze him in place.

A police siren wailed for two seconds then cut off. “Attention! Attention! Citizens of Carolina!” a robotic voice announced. “A curfew has been instituted. Return to your homes.” Red and blue lights radiated from down the street. “Attention! Attention! Terrorists known as the ‘Patriots’ have been spotted in the area!”

Things slowed down. He couldn’t run away. Kevin was halfway through the door when Alexa ran up to him. The girl gripped his wrist, her nails tore into his flesh.

Sirens blared, tearing about his eardrums. “Attention! Attention! Citizens of Carolina! A curfew has been instituted. Return to your homes.”

She dragged the frozen boy into the pub, his feet dragged against the concrete.

“Terrorists known as the ‘Patriots’ have been-” his ears felt like they were going to explode.

The door slammed shut behind him. The noises of the outside were muffled and distant. Edward had no choice to be anywhere, except for where he was. A Scottish Mafia pub.

Edward sat at a bar. In some ways, it was similar to the tower’s: poorly lit, bar counter, and a bartender. That is where the similarities stopped, unlike the tower, it was loud, far louder. An accordion and fiddle pumped out melodies at a frantic rate. It was jam-packed with people. Some played cards, yelling triumphantly whenever they won a hand while pulling in their rewards. Others sat in the corner and talked in hushed voices. Still, others drank till their liver gave out. The place was rank with the smell of ‘tea’.

Edward and Kevin sat alone at the bar counter, the boy noticed that everyone made a point to not to sit with the outsiders. Alexa disappeared with the man at the front door, leaving her fellow Patriots to their own devices.

The kid kept his head down and shifted uncomfortably in his stool. He wanted to leave. Even though the Scots avoided them, some recognized him as someone else. They always called him ‘Glenn’. When they realized their mistake they had a bleak look in their eyes, apologized, and stayed far away from him as they could. He was thankful for that. He wondered who Glenn was, and where Alexa had gone.

Kevin wasn’t doing much better. He hid his discomfort behind a shaky smile. The older teen on multiple occasions tried to get the bartender’s attention. He failed multiple times. The tender continued to ignore him in favor of serving other members and going into the back.

He turned to Kevin, to see if he had any idea. The older teen held his head low, his brown eyes stared at the counter, “Why did Alexa drag me here?” His words were quiet, almost incoherent.

Edward didn’t know how to answer that. He didn’t know if it was directed towards him or if it was a rhetorical question. The boy looked the other way. Kevin was of no help to him, he probably wouldn’t know.

The tender came out of the back with a glass in hand. Like the rest of the patrons, hard lines dominated his face. A jagged scar ran from his lip to his chin. His dark brown hair contrasted with the paleness of his eyes.

Edward decided it was his turn to get his attention. “Excuse me,” he said in a small voice. The man either didn’t hear him or ignored him. The boy repeated himself if only just a bit louder. Nothing. He slumped in his seat, he would have to try harder. With a shaky right hand, he pinched the corner of the sunglasses’ frame. Edward took a deep breath and lifted them just above his eyebrows. The room became twice as bright. The older teen looked at strangely, his lips starting to form a question. His pale eyes danced around, trying to catch the bartender’s own. They locked, blue against hazel. “Excuse me,” he said.

Something flickered behind the man’s eyes. He walked over, defeated. Edward returned the glasses to the bridge of his nose. “Can I help you?” Came a harsh voice.

Kevin gapped at the accomplishment. The younger teen’s leg bounced up and down. “Who- Who is Glenn?”

The older teen gave him a warning look. The man’s gaze shifted to Kevin then back to Edward. “You two came in with Alexa,” he phrased in more of a statement than a question. The two nodded. “And you are Ghost?” He nodded again. The man hesitated before giving an abstract answer, “You kinda look like him. I can see why Alexa brought you along.”

Edward frowned that told him nothing, only that Alexa knows him. “Is he here?” he questioned further.

The bartender shook his head, “Listen, kid. I have no idea who you are-” Edward’s stomach dropped, of course, he wouldn’t tell him. “However, Alexa seems to trust you enough to bring you here, so I guess I do too.” The boy didn’t expect that. The Mafia trusted it’s own, like some twisted family. The man beckoned him closer, Edward obliged. “Glenn was Alexa’s little brother.” He pulled away.

The boy blinked. “That’s all?”

The man nodded. A mafia member stole away his attention, preventing Edward from getting any more insight. Wait. He didn’t need any more information. The word ‘was’ echoed in his mind. It twisted his stomach in two. He wouldn’t have time to ruminate on it for long.

Foots steps from upstairs pounded against the ceiling. A few moments later Alexa, like a blur, came running down the stairs. Terror filled her eyes. “Guys we have to go, the-”

A knock, like thunder, pounded against the door. It shook glasses, chairs, and everything in between. His heart pounded against his ribcage. The bar grounded to the halt, all of its patrons stared at the entrance. “This is the police! Open up!”

The bartender nodded, “Use the back.” The members put out their smokes and put away their instruments. All of them became sober at once. Another, heavier, pair of footsteps came down the stairs. The man from the doorway.

Alexa shook her head. “Can’t, they surrounded the building.”

The police pounded against the door again, “Open up or we are breaking down the door! This is your final warning!”

The tender’s eyes narrowed, “Come with me to the kitchen, the three of you.”

Edward got flashbacks to the Gala. The utter fear he felt watching the other surrounded and alone. The sinking feeling he would never be with his brother again. The boy followed the group into the kitchen. The bald man made his way to the door to greet the intruders. The kitchen they entered was less of a restaurant kitchen and more of a galley. Dirty dishes were piled high in the sink, dirty rags were strewn about.

“Stay here until Cin resolves this issue,” he commanded. The man turned for the swing door.

Edward needed one thing from him, “Wait!” He turned, the older man’s face blossomed with impatience. The boy shrank back, “I just wanted to know your name.”

His face softened the smallest amount. “Steafan.” Steafan wasted no more time and disappeared into the front.

“Well, this is-” Kevin started to complain.

Alexa muffled the rest of his words with her hand, “SHHHHH.” She pointed with her other hand towards the front. The girl kept her gaze on him until he nodded.

Edward on the floor, its tiles stained his jeans. Questions rushed through his mind at an alarming rate. How did they even know they were there. No one was following them as far as Edward could see. He felt every hair on him stand straight, had they seen his face? Did they see the Patriots before or after he put on the disguise?

The foremost one was, how were they to escape? Edward couldn’t run away from this situation. Or could he? Edward focused in on the noise in the other room. The door slammed open. There was muffled chatter, multiple people entered the building. “Is this everyone in the building?” a man’s voice asked.

There was a pause, then a muffled, “I believe so.” It was Cin.

Another long pause, sweat dripped down his forehead. Maybe they would leave. Even more, entered the building. Why wasn’t anyone leaving? Kevin looked at Alexa worried, the girl kept her face of stone.

The answer came, “Money can’t buy you out of this. We know one of your members is apart of the terrorists.”

Edward looked at Alexa, her expression cracked. They needed to leave. Edward stood up slowly. Kevin plunged his hands in his pockets, hiding his shaky hands. A plan started to formulate in his mind. It was quite similar to the Gala escape.

“I wouldn’t know,” Cin replied.

Silence. The three of them stared at the door. They trembled. Time was running out. It wouldn’t be long before they were surrounded with no hope.

“Then you wouldn’t mind us looking around here.”

It was time. His plan probably wouldn’t work, but it was the only thing they could do. Edward beckoned the others closer. “I have an idea,” he started. They both nodded. “Do you know where the breaker is?”

“Further down the hallway,” Alexa notified. Edward glanced down the galley, a metal panel glimmered against the fluorescent light. ‘Good’, he thought to himself, at least it was close.

“Is there roof access?” he asked further.

Alexa paused then nodded. The girl cracked a smile, she knew exactly what she was planning. Kevin didn’t look so impressed, “Don’t tell me we are going run by them and hope they don’t see us in the dark.” Alexa and Edward blinked at him, that is exactly what the boy had in mind.

“I will shut off the power, you guys head upstairs and open the access,” he continued, ignoring Kevin’s doubts. Doubts he himself held as well.

Alexa nodded, “Are you sure you’ll be able to make it.”

‘No’ his mind told him. But he would try his best. For Leo. Edward nodded. The boy tip-toed towards the panel while Alexa dragged Kevin towards the door. It sounded like Cin was doing his best to stall the police. The panel chilled his hands to the bone. His fingers slipped under the latched. He pulled at it. Nothing. The thing wouldn’t budge. He didn’t want to do it, but there was no other choice. He pulled on it harder. Nothing. Edward clenched his jaw, he had everything stacked against him why was this going wrong too? Frustration gripped him, he pulled at it with all his might.

The tension was released. The panel gave up. It ripped open slamming the wall. The boy smacked against the tile floor, his hand throbbed. He messed up.

“What was that?” a voice boomed through the wall.

Edward shot up off the ground, his entire body shook from adrenaline. In desperation, he pushed the main breaker off. There was a loud CRACK, then there was nothing but darkest. He heard the swing door slam open and closed. Noise didn’t matter that point. The boy ran for the door, his shoes smacked against the floor. The entire bar was thrown into confusion. Police yelled to get out of the way. The sheer amount of bodies prevented any meaningful action. Not for Edward, Edward was so smalled that he wove in and out of people. The boy battled against the sea of people, his gut was slammed into tables, and shins battered against boots. He persisted, refusing to be swept away.

He got to the stairs, the boy breathed hard. Each breath got harder and harder, his lungs began to close. Edward had to keep moving. He heard a pair of footsteps ahead of him. They made it through. He pulled himself up the stairs. He looked back, some had taken out flashlights and pointed them into the chaos.

“I hear them going upstairs!” another officer cried out.

How could they hear over the chaos, he asked himself. At that revelation, the beams of light pointed at the staircase. Edward could see the light shine past him. Too slow. He kept going, rounding the corner upstairs. The young teen heard latches being opened and made for them. It was dark, too dark to see detail, except for the carpeted under him. Edward ran down the long corridor looking glancing through each doorway.

He found it. Moonlight poured from the ceiling. Alexa’s head popped down, gravity pulled her ginger hair down. It would have looked ridiculous in any other situation. “Over here.”

Edward entered the room, footsteps upon footsteps rumbled up the stairs. His breath got faster, the boy rushed over. Alexa took his hand and pulled him up. He tried to pull himself up too, but his strength was failing him. Alexa inched him up but to no avail. Kevin got his other arm. He levitated off the ground. The enemy was on the second floor. Edward swung his legs back and forth in terror. They got closer.

“They are escaping!” the lead officer cried out.

The older teens pulled him onto the roof. They let him go as fast as possible, letting him tumble. His arms scraped against the asphalt. They put back the access panel and laid bricks on it. The three got up, Edward’s strength was failing him, his knees were weak. He felt like he was going to pass out. No amount of oxygen was enough.

Alexa didn’t wait for him to catch his breath. She pulled the half-conscious boy along the rooftop. They hopped from rooftop to rooftop, eventually finding a fire escape. Clouds rolled in. They stumbled off the rooftops and into the alleyways.

The sirens were just a distant memory. The rain started to pour down on the weary teens. They were sat in a random alley no one cared about, besides an overflowing trash bin. Rain mixed with his tears. Edward didn’t care when the droplets stung his gnashes, he didn’t care he was cold, and he didn’t care that he was on the run from the Empire that killed his parents. He was still bound to Master.

Thunder roared in the sky.

The boy ran over to the brick wall and punch it with all his force. Pain shot up his arm. He screamed into the sky until his throat was raw. Was it seconds? Or was it minutes before he stopped? He didn’t know.

Alexa stood over him. Her soaked hair covers her eyes. There were a few more scares he hadn’t noticed before on her cheeks. She leaned in and hugged him, he made no effort to return it. The girl whispered into his ear, “It’s ok Glenn.”

***

“Where have you three been!?”

Was the first thing the trio of teens heard when they got back to the tower. The enraged butler greeted them. Alexa, Kevin, and Edward stood there frozen as Percival ranted how reckless their outing was. He paced around listing off every reason why it was a bad idea. Eiden was the only other person in the bar; far removed from the conversation.

Edward wasn’t paying attention to his words, he couldn’t. He needed to sleep, everything hurt. Percival tired himself out from tirade; he rubbed his face. “Didn’t anyone follow you?” he asked in a strained voice.

“No.” Alexa confirmed.

Percival nodded, “Good.” The butler looked at Eiden, the teen met his gaze. “I hope you didn’t have anything to do with this.”

Eiden rolled his eyes and looked away. “I wouldn’t be so stupid. I just sent Alexa out, I don’t know why she would bring the idiot and the brat,” he mumbled.

His eyes remained steadfast on the angry teen, “Why did you send anyone out at all?” The angry teen remained stubborn in silence. Percival sighed, his eyes darted to Edward. They pierced into him, the boy looked down. Guilt for going out flowed through him. “As for you… Master wants to see you.”

His heart dropped.

Alexa stared.