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Ahead, tall maples and cottonwoods towered over buildings, drawing her into their expanse. A few leaves swirled through the air, and Erin danced to their cadence, breathing in joy.
Lost in the blissful moment, Erin’s gaze caught on a lady sitting at a table outside a coffee shop across from the park. Unlike the other automatons she’d passed by without a thought downtown, something about this woman reeked of vitality.
Erin had to know more. Striding across the park, she crossed the street and walked straight up to the woman whom she could now see was marked as a daemon summoner.
Erin eyed the whisperer with abject curiosity. “You’re completely alive. It’s beautiful. What’s your name?”
The summoner’s eyebrow shot up, her expression regarding Erin with blatant amusement. “I’m Meri, and thank you? Your name would be…?”
“Oh, I think I’ve heard of you! My name’s Erin. Can I sit?”
Meri inclined her head, relaxing back into her chair. “Go right ahead.”
Erin pulled out a chair and sat down next to the summoner, energy thrumming through her slight frame. “Thank you.”
A waitress paused at the table, staring openly at Erin, her eyes lingering on Erin’s ink and blood-stained clothes. A smile crept along Meri’s features. “Would you like a coffee?” Erin nodded. “Another for me, and one for my new friend here,” Meri said to the waitress.
“We don’t want any trouble, Meri,” replied the waitress, her expression terse.
“And there won’t be any, Carla.” Meri’s confidence was no match for Carla’s concern.
“I’ll get that right out for you.” Carla dashed off into the building.
“So, you’re looking very free spirited today. What’s the occasion?” Meri asked.
Erin glanced down at her clothes, ran her fingers through her wild hair, and shrugged. “I had a copier incident and then I was fired.”
Meri gave a brief nod. “And is the blood from the copier battle, or did you knock off your boss on the way out?”
A nervous laugh escaped Erin’s lips. She tried unsuccessfully to stop bouncing her knees. “No battle, not today, at least so far. The copier man hit his head, and I helped him clean up. This is his blood.”
Meri appraised Erin, her eyes missing no detail. “You have blood all over your hands, the side of your face. I even see a bit in your hair, and of course it’s all over your clothes as well.” Meri leaned forward and whispered, “I bet people think you look straight from the slaughter.”
She doesn’t pull any punches, does she?“It’s that bad?” Erin asked.
Meri pursed her lips and nodded slowly, sitting back in her chair.
“But you don’t seem concerned by my appearance?” Erin pressed.
Meri chuckled. “I’ve seen worse. Most days, before ten AM.”
Something about Meri’s direct and nonchalant acceptance of violence, which could have been mere bravado, struck Erin as blatant honesty. It occurred to Erin that she should be uncomfortable with her current situation. A surge of anxiety formed within her chest, bubbling into questions in her mind.
“Aren’t you a daemon summoner?” Erin asked, and Meri nodded. “So, can you tell me what’s wrong with me?” Clearly something had gone wrong, and Erin did not know how to fix her broken life.
“Uh. Well, what do you think is wrong with you?” Meri asked.
Their waitress, Carla, returned with their coffees. She swept in and out, shooting Meri a pointed look.
Erin added two sugars to the black brew, stirring it as she mulled over her thoughts, liquid sloshing out of the cup. “Well, for starters, as of an hour ago, I am unemployed with no income to provide for myself.” Erin lifted the cup and took a quick sip of hot coffee, but avoided burning her tongue despite the brew’s heat.
“That sounds like an unpleasant situation. Do you have prospects?”
Erin considered for a moment, anxiety crawling between her shoulder blades. She scratched at her scalp and then tried to comb through her hair yet again. “I’ve got nothing. I’ll have to hit the mills tomorrow or see if I can pick up some piecemeal work. Nothing I can find will pay what the gig at Pythia paid me, and I can’t use them as a job reference after today.”
“Okay, is anything else wrong?” Meri watched her intently.
Erin put her cup down. “I’m unusually strong suddenly. And, um, I know things about wine.”
