Page 4 of Vameer

Pleas for mercy.

The silence of none.

One month, then I’ll figure out what is next.

One month, then I’ll find my new purpose.

My gravito wraps itself around me.

Fighting has been my purpose since that awful day. Since I watched my mother fall.

I slow my breathing.

Maybe when I’m rested, I will want to continue.

But maybe once I’ve rested, I will find a new meaning to life.

Just one month.

And I will find myself when I wake.

Believing that, I let myself fall into sleep.

Chapter 1

Rune

103 YEARS LATER

Ismile around a mouthful of honey latte, grateful I made myself leave the house today.

The world has been a little crazy lately. With the whole Battle of Versailles thing. And the people can turn into wolves thing. But there’s nothing like a free birthday beverage to make an afternoon better.

I move toward the curb, making room for the older couple on the sidewalk walking toward me.

“Hello.” I smile.

They don’t hear me. Or they ignore me. But I swear I saw her glance at my bare legs.

I take another sip and drop my smile after they pass.

So sorry for wearing shorts. Sincerest apologies that my body is going through some kind of heatwave today.

Maybe next year for my birthday, I can move to the middle of nowhere. No neighbors. No one to politely move aside for while I’m walking around in the woods. I could become a forest witch, like from the fairy tales I read as a kid. Just minus the whole villain thing.

I wonder what sort of job would allow me to do that.

Maybe something like my current setup, just not in town.

The town I’m in is cute. Perfectly fine. I live in the historic downtown area, so the summer was swarming with tourists, but now that it’s offseason, there aren’t a lot of people coming to Upstate New York.

When I reach the end of the block, I turn onto my street.

I force myself to appreciate the cuteness as I savor my latte.

It might not be a forest-witch setting, but it is sort of like a fairy tale. Two-story houses line both sides of the street. No two neighbors are painted the same color. But the neighboring houses are nearly close enough to touch.

My imagination has always been active, as my teachers used to say, so I can’t help but imagine what it was like living on this street back in the day.