Rynth: Four Beats

| 5th of Teryusin — Year 362 of the Cycle of Synthesis, Grand Cycle ??? |

The both of them stuck close to the trees and neighboring verdure, taking extra caution to time their movements when no attention was directed at their general side. Despite not being used to espionage and stealth, Raoul and Idri took to adopting their amateurs’ version of the art—of which mostly consisted of reckless dives to the dirt the moment the former noticed the guards’ suspicion pointed at them. Still, their steps were as measured as measured could be.

Idri was marginally better. In contrast to Raoul’s unsteady movements, her feet were light on the grass, the leaves barely even noticing she had stepped over them before crunching near-silently. Her experience in the underground in action, Raoul thought.

“I did say we could sneak past the guards, but we could always just run straight through and hope to lose them on the way.”

Idri pressed her back to a wide tree trunk and contemplated the comment. “I could, but could you, Raoul? You’re not as fast as me. You’d run out of stamina before that happened. I suppose I could carry you piggyback again, but that’d slow me down too.”

She continued, an idea striking her. “I could also reveal myself and draw their attention, if you want?”

“Reckless,” he shook his head in reply, shutting down the option instantly. “I don’t want to risk you. We’ll find a way for both of us to get through at the same time. Just… give me a second.”

Pushing himself up, Raoul kept crouched and gradually inched closer to the exit. Within minutes, he was three stones’ throw worth of distance from the checkpoint, close enough that the three uniformed guardsmen were in clear view and he could audibly make out the entire conversation that was unfolding between the guard holding a small electronic tablet and the driver of the black minivan in the front. He narrowed his eyes, focused his gaze, and began surveying the walls for any weak points.

There, he noted in his head. A section of the white walls had visibly worn away, most likely as a result of the years not being favorable to it. Parts of the wood had protruded just enough that it could serve well enough as a foothold for Idri to leap off and onto the balcony. He turned and gestured for her to move to his position.

“There’s a part of the wall there where the wood’s worn enough to use it as a foothold,” pointed Raoul. “Can you use that to make it up to the balcony that’s another leap up?”

“I can if I get a headstart. Can you distract the guards for me, Raoul?”

“Yeah, of course. I’ll tell you when, so set yourself up to run. Once you’re up, leave a hand down so I can jump after you.”

With her nod, Raoul shifted his posture, propping himself up just enough to get a good angle of a tree northwest of his position. Idri was already primed and ready to run, waiting on his signal.

He breathed, concentrating for a brief instant. The Jati in his body responded, coursing through his veins and running down the length of his arm before pouring into his fingernails. Hurling his arm in a throwing motion, all five Jati Missiles launched off, traveling through the air.

He didn’t wait for it to hit. The moment all five were fired, he shot a look to Idri, who noticed and immediately burst off into a sprint. Moments later, the missiles made contact with the upper branches of the tree, each subsequent hit shaking its foundation enough to rustle the leaves and make a noise loud enough for all of the guards on the road to pause what they were doing and follow the source of the sound.

Idri’s speed was something to behold. Before all five of the missiles landed, she had already leapt off the wall and used it to propel herself for a second jump. She caught a hold of the carved wooden railing with one hand and brought her other to pull her body up and over.

By some manner of bad luck, a guard happened to be stationed at the spot where she had vaulted, and he immediately fumbled with the handgun at his side and pointed the barrel in Idri’s direction. “Wha…! Freeze!”

An apologetic smile entered Idri’s face. The sword on her back blinked in response to the threat, and it detached itself off, swinging its pommel straight for the guard’s neck and knocking him out cold with a rough thunk. It kept itself afloat, as if standing guard.

Idri immediately turned back and slid in between and under the cracks of the railing, her hand outstretched, ready to catch Raoul. Just in time, the latter followed, taking advantage of the guards still being distracted to make his own leap up. His footwork was slipshod and showed his weaker athletic ability, nearly causing him to fall back. As a result, his own jump covered barely half the distance Idri’s did, but he reached his own hand out just in time to clasp around hers. Idri’s grip tightened, and with one pull she hoisted him over the railing. Kranstor returned to her back with a click, silently notifying her that it was clear.

And clear it was. The chemin de ronde was devoid of patrolling guards, the only notable sort being the four shirkers who were playing cards atop one of the open-roof towers and around a crackling fire.

Raoul crawled over to the opposite railing and leaned his head back, sighing. “Good thing it worked. I was dreading, thinking about making that jump.”

“Mm, I’m surprised you wanted to go the physical route. I’m glad the walls aren’t that tall. Why is it like that, by the way?”

“Something about sticking to our roots,” replied Raoul, still catching his breath. “At least that’s what the city’s forefathers said. It’s the only part of the city that hasn’t yet been considered for renovation. Everything else’s either kept older or brought to a chosen Cycle’s timeframe and style.”

“I’m thankful for that. When you’re ready, we can find the way down.”

“Yeah… just, need a moment.”

Once Raoul had gathered himself, the both of them quickly found a spiral stairway that led right to a lower level with open windows, and from there they scaled the rest of the wall and timed their exit from the wall with the next sequence of cars that were allowed through. Using each one as concealment for their frames, the both of them moved slowly but surely through what little nature was present and eventually were far enough from the walls that the guards couldn’t reasonably make them out, especially with Nyxia’s nearing descent.

They were free for now; with each breath of fresh air that confirmed that fact, their backs straightened more until they were treading the paved path like they were on a casual evening walk.

His first taste of freedom. He wasn’t entirely free yet, but Raoul was already relishing the feel of the air on his skin, the subtle whistle of the wind as it blew, and the openness of the fields around them. He wouldn’t allow himself to enjoy it fully—that was to be saved for when all four of them had exited the city walls together. Still, a little enjoyment couldn’t be helped.

The girl in front of him took up most of his vision. Her arms were outstretched, showing no sign of falling down anytime soon. With each step they took, the smile on her lips only grew wider, growing to overtake her entire face until all that was left was one of pure glee and happiness. A flock of brown-feathered sparrows, twelve in number, flapped overhead, their chirps drawing her attention. More chirps followed, these ones a drone and slightly higher-pitched—crickets that were seeking female mates.

Nature seemed to be conducting an entire symphony for her. Immediately after the crickets, the hooting of an owl pierced the darkening sky, an oddity at that time of day. And then even after that were three yips, all from coyotes that stalked the plains and hunted for small prey.

She stopped, and then turned, approaching Raoul.

“What?”

No reply yet. She brought a finger to his nose and tapped. “Boop. You’re it!” The next moment, she ran off.

Raoul was smiling the next, and he charged off, running after her. “Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be? I’m tagging you next.”

In the ethereal orchestra built up by the world, in that moment, all that was important to the both of them was each other, and the knowledge that their journey had just begun.