Moving away from the outer boundary wall, the figure blitzed through the inner boundary barrier, into the main city streets.
Then, the weather changed. One moment, the storm raged, and the next, it was pacified.
Actually, no. It was more like it disappeared and was replaced by an artificially engineered summer day, complete with stale air and sunless light.
Tall spires shot up in the distance, with transit lines carefully threaded through them, forming a traffic web of sorts.
The Divine didn't slow down for anything. She moved through the city like the weather, with complete indifference to whatever was in her path. Foot traffic parted around her without her asking.
Overhead, transit lines ran in near silence. Only a low, clean hum that Yun had long since stopped noticing.
The only time Yun had used the transit system was when he was a newly born baby, but that was a story for another day.
Slung over the Divine's shoulder like a sack of potatoes, he watched the city scroll past upside down.
It wasn't a bad view, objectively. Just disorienting.
A few blocks in, he heard a sharp intake of breath. A girl, maybe sixteen, standing outside a noodle stall with a bowl going cold in her hands. She'd spotted them. Or rather, the speeding Divine.
Her mouth stopped working. Her friend beside her grabbed her sleeve and said something Yun couldn't catch, and then both of them were fumbling for their flash-pads with desperate urgency.
Such looks were never directed at Yun, obviously, but he knew why. He was a Descendant, and they occupied a strange category in the human imagination. Not as awe-inspiring as Divines but just as mysterious and out-of-reach.
In truth, Divines were merely just awakened Descendants. Like the difference between a raw egg and an omelette.
Looking to his right in the distance, Yun saw the western edge of the Stone District, floating almost a kilometre above the rest of the city. With its population being in the millions, it was a large metropolis in its own right, but a drop in the bucket compared to the entire city.
It was the home of the Descendants, and from down here in the Market District, its older architecture read as deliberate — dressed stone and vaulted silhouettes against the sky, opulence that didn't need to announce itself because the height already did that. Especially for Yun, who spent the better part of his life directly below it in the Hollows. It had always felt further away than it looked.
A message played in repeat on the highlight monitor, a gigantic screen in the middle of the Market District:
"Citizens of the East Wing. You are reminded that we are approaching the 31st Vision Cycle.
During this period, which occurs once every seven years, Descendants will begin to undergo spontaneous Vision spells.
In the event of First Vision failure, please be advised that the corpses will become Plague catalysts.
Proximity and exposure to them WILL result in rapid-onset contamination and hostile mutation into Plague Monsters."
A pause. Then:
"If you encounter an unresponsive or entranced individual, maintain distance and notify your nearest Divine authority immediately.
Do not approach. Do not assist.
Remain indoors if possible.
We thank our Divines for their continued service in maintaining public safety and their continuing battle against the Plague in the Forsaken Realm."
Yun frowned.
Why did that sound familiar?
The highlight monitor chimed melodically.
"Hallowed be Severin."
***
About an hour later, Yun was glued to a wooden chair in the middle of a torch-lit cellar. The cramped space was moist, and the smell of mold stuck stubbornly in the air.
The flames of the torches along the walls danced across the silver surface of the Divine's armour, adorning her tall frame in what looked like starlight; Yun might have been bewitched in any other scenario, but his rude saviour hadn't even bothered to introduce herself.
The Divine — who was currently scribbling symbols onto the weathered stone wall — had placed paper seals around him meant to 'anchor' him, whatever that meant. 'Restrict movement' was a more accurate description.
Being unable to clutch his stomach made the hunger pangs worse. All Yun could do was lick his lips like some kind of drug addict. He'd seen his fair share of them to know that it wasn't the most respectable position to be in.
Unable to bear the silence, he decided to break the ice.
"You could have at least pretended to struggle when you snatched me up like that," he said with a crooked grin.
"I don't like being reminded of my vertical deficiency."
The Divine spared him a fleeting glance, and then returned to her scribbling. She gave a tired sigh and responded in a subdued tone.
"Oh, so you can still joke around? Your personality is still intact. I'm glad."
"You're glad?"
"Yep, it's been a long day, kid."
She finished the last symbol, dropped the brush, and sat across from him. Her scarlet pupils stared directly into Yun's dark amber eyes. He promptly averted her gaze.
"My name is Dion, but you'll address me as Virtue Dion. Let's make this quick. Your next Vision spell may be your last if we delay any further…"
"Oh. And a spell is…"
"That annoying voice you've been hearing."
Right, the Curse. Looks like pretending he didn't hear Dion's first mention of it didn't help. This was happening.
"Before we continue, you are required to state the following: I have been called upon by the Law of the Divine. In accordance with the Descendant Declaration of Penance, I hereby submit myself as an aspirant for the First Vision and a wielder of Severin's Curse."
What did she say? It was getting kinda hard to pay attention. Yun was preoccupied with salivating over some juicy meat. He was currently choosing between an imaginary chicken wing and a steak. Not that he'd know the difference between the two.
He coughed.
"I have been called upon by the Law of the Divine. In accordance with the… uhm… Descendant Declaration of… Independence? I submit as an aspirant for the First Vision and a wielder of Severin's Curse."
Yun tried to scratch his head before the seals tugged his arm back.
"I'm pretty sure I botched that."
Dion waved it off. She didn't seem to care.
"Descendant," she said. "State your name."
The sudden shift in Virtue Dion's tone made Yun sit up. Or try to, at least.
"Yun."
"No Clan name?"
Not really, no.
"Uh, I am originally part of the High Clan Morrigan, but I was born in exile."
Yun shifted as much as the paper seals could allow him.
"I'm Tainted. Mother couldn't resist some human's sweet words. She's a bit gullible, you see…"
Virtue Dion eyed him from top to bottom — his threadbare clothing, chapped skin, messy black hair… physically lacking — nodding as if everything suddenly made sense.
Ouch.
There wasn't any contempt in her eyes, though. That was new.
He shrugged.
"I feel the most sorry for Sister, really. Imagine having to leave the luxury of the Stone District because your mother fell for a human of all things."
"Uh huh. So, you're a Morrigan? Heard those warmongers were in search of some idiot who thought it'd be a good idea to steal from them."
Yun felt his heart forget how to heart. The crest concealed in his pockets suddenly became too heavy.
Dion strained her eyes as if she were struggling to recall something.
"I think it was a Vestige or something? Put a bounty on their head and everything."
Her eyes had a sharp glint, but her voice maintained the same bored attitude.
"You wouldn't know anything about that? Help a Virtue out. Being favoured by a Virtue means being favoured by the Law of the Divine, you know?"
What kind of question was that? Was she trying to make a buck off him?
"I'll keep my ears open once my brain stops leaking."
"Alright, then," she said nonchalantly. Her chair creaked as she adjusted her posture. The scarlet Divine was already moving on.
… Weirdo.
"Now," Dion leaned in. "How much do you know about the First Vision?"