Ghosts here were silent, were terrifying. Could give a smile as they slit your throat. Ghosts walked without noise, could leave destruction in their wake. Some said that the Ghosts hated killing as much as they hated themselves for living. Some said there were Ghosts that enjoyed it, that lived to kill. To destroy. To wreak havoc before them. Ghosts were said to carry the weight of the world of their shoulders. The weight of the souls they had sent on. There was a different type of Ghost though, and those were feared. It was said that some Ghosts could talk with the souls they killed, that some were driven mad by the knowledge. Knowledge of the lives they had taken. Knowledge of the life they had torn away. Children were the worst. Children were always the worst. Ghosts and killers were one being with different names. A blade by any other name is still just as blood stained.
(Did I do okay? I don't normally let myself do things like this. Is it alright?)
Al sat on the roof of some ramshackle inn. He looked up at the sun. Back down to the streets. A yellow jeep tailed by a bike zipped past, floating down the street like two fallen leaves in a river, probably headed to the Industrials if he had to guess. He sighed, coming upright, and strode to the edge of the roof. Some old bastard started yelling at him, hollering for him to come down off the roof.
He sighed once more.
"Oh well, I been meanin' to catch a walk anyways." He said, to nobody in particular, before descending down the side of the building, into the ground. Our hero sauntered down the dreary streets of Salem.
(Oh my god, Orion, all we needed was Sam and the gang would be here lmao)
andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer)'s yellow jeep comes to a stuttering halt on the corner of a restaurant and a general store. I only had twenty Pieces, the currency here, and that sure as hell wasn't enough to buy either dinner or any of supplies I might need from the shop. andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer)'s car door slams and I take my helmet off, shaking out my messy black hair. There was only one other reason we'd be here.
Underneath the general store was an underground lot that held Salem's "Black Market", which was really just where Outside World objects were bought and sold. andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer) was a scavenger, so he was on constant trips in and out of the Orchard Walls. We were here on business for him.
"What are we doing here?" I ask, crossing my arms, still sitting on my parked bike with my feet on the pavement.
andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer) smiles lazily, with the look of someone who's trying to hide their excitement. "I've been looking for one of these for months, and I finally found one."
"Found what?" I'm interrupted by andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer) opening the passenger side of his jeep. A little rrrrufff sounds out into the air, and then a little ball of grey fluff jumps out.
Ori eventually found his way out of the winding paths, breaths coming easy. Eyes blue he headed to Salem's "Black Market." Sad that it was more acceptable to earn a living there than it was to use blood magic. Seeing a yellow jeep, he slowed. Seeing a fellow Ghost, he went over. As a Ghost, Orion has a symbol of his choosing, a small selection of stars, tattooed on his ankle, what the humans would have called an achilles heel. Making his footsteps louder for a moment so the other would not startle, he greeted him. "Hello. Is that a," pausing for a moment, as if looking for the right word, "dog?" Orion carries himself like Ghosts tend to, coiled like a spring.
I tense at the little creature, then a word comes clear to my mind just as Orion says it just behind me. Dog. It was a dog.
"andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer), where did you find that thing?" I take a step backward, examining it closely. It was scruffy in the least and needed a wash, shoulder to shoulder with Ori.
"Yeah, it is!" andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer) says excitedly, picking up the thing and holding it up to me. It wiggles uncomfortably and makes a small whining noise, wanting to be put down. "I found him in a human abandoned warehouse. I couldn't find his mom or any siblings, so I assumed he was a stray. No tags. I think he'll go for good money here."
I look at the thing closer, and it catches my gaze. Immediately, a feeling of warmth envelopes me and a smile a small, amused smile. The Hum starts to thud distantly in my ears, and I look up at andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer).
"Has he got a name?" Part of being an Earth witch was an acute sense of give and take. On the daily, I took from the earth hunting and fishing and gathering in the woods near my house for Pieces. And on the daily, I gave back to it. Before bed every night I would put the last of my remaining energy into the ground outside my back porch. On top of that, I never killed females or yearlings and tried my best not to disturb the environment. My falcon, Augustine, was the first animal I'd ever attached to. It would seem that this little dog would be the second. It was a special bond between man and creature that Earth Witches had a certain tendency towards, but I'd only ever felt it with Augustine before.
"I don't know. I didn't want to get attached."
"I'll tell you what." I reach out to take the dog, and andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer) places it in my arms carefully. Immediately, the dog stops it's whining and curls up into a comfortable, trusting ball. "How about you name a price here and now, and I'll pay you first thing tomorrow morning."
andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer) looks stunned. "What? You want it?" Ghosts rarely got attached to anything, but you could say that I wasn't your average Ghost. I definitely wasn't average in general.
"Yeah." I laugh lightly. "Yeah I do."
Orion smiled, getting the feeling that the dog would become fast friends with his new owner. Reaching into a pocket, he brought out a snake. Coiled in his hand, it shifted at being moved. Beautiful, with banded brown stripes, and russet diamonds along its back. Lifting its head, it stared appraisingly at both the dog and the other Ghost. Seeming to find them acceptable, it settled back down.
I watched Orion carefully as he pulled his snake out of his pocket. He'd bonded with it after the war- or before- I couldn't quite remember. Half of sealing a Bond with another animal was nature's approval, and it seemed that the snake had no harmful intention toward either of us, so it must have been true. This dog was meant to be near me, meant to grow alongside me, meant to be a friend to me. This dog was meant to be a piece of me.
I give Orion the best smile I can muster up, which is a small twitch of the corners of my mouth.
(Switching to First Person POV)
I have always been good at sensing bonds, be they magical or otherwise. A bond was already forming between the dog and the other Ghost, a bond of trust and protection. Wondering, I thought that Ghosts must rescue animals as much as animals rescue them. Stars know that I would have delved further into the madness than I did without Castox, a snake that I had raised from a hatchling. Sometimes bonds were stronger than death, with the other half dying if they had nothing else to live for. The dog would be good for the other Ghost, that much I could tell. With Castox twining around my neck, I turned to the other. "They will not have what you need to take care of your dog in the 'Under-Mart.'' An affectionate name for the black market. "Are you up for a trip into the rest of the world? You will not find what you need here. I can guide you, if you so wish."
(Can I just say that I love that the fact a little puppy is driving the plot rn)
"Most definitely." I nod before I can change my mind.
Orion gives a nod. "Follow if you wish to come. I am known as Ori. Keep your wits about you." Orion leads to one of the walls, and ducks into a tunnel going underneath, one well used by scavengers.
