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“Not all of them.”
“But Tanya you do get along with, don’t you?” Eden insisted.
Dante sighed.
“More like we don’t have much to fight about. Her territory is farther up north, so we have several neighborhoods in between us. It’s not like I particularly dislike her, either... We need the Watchdog to oversee the northern border, hence her nickname. That woman is level-headed, smart, useful, and she doesn’t annoy me. That’s pretty much it.”
“Anything else?”
“...She’s former military.”
“Military?” repeated Eden, shocked.
“I guess she has that in common with you... She was from the Core, until something happened, and she got kicked out. She had to start over from scratch and took over after the previous Dog passed. She extended her territory by making alliances with the once-enemies of her predecessor... Now she has a lot of the North, which she shares with Lecky.”
“Lecky... That’s the Goat then?”
“Aleksander Lecky,” nodded Dante. “That one I’ve never met.”
Eden had only heard about the Goat... It was the one Zodiac that didn’t care much about its people’s real ethnicity, race, or background, which also made it one of the most chaotic. The history itself wasn’t very clear. Some said the Goat was initially a group of gypsies. Others said it was the forgotten religions assembled or a former West-European civilization that hadn’t made it to the Core... Nothing was really clear, and no one really cared. The Goat was said to be the Zodiac of those who didn’t belong to any of the other Zodiacs, and that was probably the one truth everyone could agree on. It also made it one of the most dangerous... There was reportedly a lot of infighting, and the Zodiac spent a lot of time trying to pacify his population.
Eden tried to mentally recapitulate what had been said that day, and, from the looks of it, only two of the Zodiacs wouldn’t be involved: the Mexican Eagle and the Japanese Snake... which meant the other Zodiacs would be ready to work together against the Core? Eden was surprised. She wouldn’t even have fathomed a meeting like the one she had witnessed was possible, so imagining this many Zodiacs working together was still unreal to her.
“...Do you really think we can stop whatever the Core’s preparing?” she asked with a sigh.
“Yes.”
“How?”
“That, we have yet to determine... Although, I think Ghost might help us, don’t you think?”
Eden rolled her eyes. How could he still tease her in such a situation? She was already tired just thinking about it.
However, she did understand they had to do something. Everyone knew the Core wouldn’t mind stepping over thousands of people, as long as they were the Suburbs’ citizens, to get what they wanted. This was a daily thing for them: living with the impression of being the lesser people, those who didn’t deserve fresh air, real plants, organic food, or hot water. Eden felt bitter each time she remembered her childhood in the Core.
She had very faint memories, but she knew that, even then, she was different from the other children in the Core. Her family lived in a large, beautiful house with a huge garden and a high fence. They didn’t receive visitors, and Eden had no memories of playing with other children... only her mother. It was as if... they were living in a bubble, away from the rest of the Core, but with all the luxuries it could offer. It was strange. She didn’t like to think about those times, but she sometimes wondered. Why had she been forced to suddenly leave? Why had her mother made her run to the Suburbs, as if... as if they were chased? She remembered that scary night. Her mother’s panicked whispers, in the cover of darkness. Them running in the streets, hiding in the shadows, aiming toward the wall. The tears, the fear. The pain of her bare feet, and the soft touch of that plushie she had held against her the whole time.
“Eden?”
Dante’s voice took her out of her train of memories. She turned, and he was staring at her, looking curious and concerned. Eden cleared her throat.
“...Can you drop me at the border of the Eagle’s territory?”
“No. Why?”
“I want to stop by Jack’s bar.”
“I thought it was in the Dragon’s territory.”
“It is, and not on your way.”
…And it isn’t your territory either, she wanted to add. Eden knew how dangerous it was for Dante to go on the Dragon’s territory at the moment. With Yang dead, probably even more so. Yet, the Tiger chuckled, sipping more of his whiskey.
“Rolf. Drop us off at the bar.”
“Yes, sir.”
As soon as they had crossed the Tiger’s territory to get to the Dragon’s, Eden had been extremely tense. She couldn’t believe Dante was crazy enough to venture there again after what had happened the last time. Yet, the three black cars were indeed making their way through the Chinese neighborhood, dozens of eyes following them. The cars’ windows were probably tinted so people outside couldn’t see them, but Eden could feel the glares nonetheless. Perhaps she would have glared too if she had been outside of that car. The people had a way of knowing when someone dangerous was passing by, someone like one of the Zodiacs. Moreover, the situation in that area was dire.
