Alex picked up a nearby rock and threw it at a tree behind them. The impact was loud enough to grab the attention of the tree men. This was his cue to attack. He dashed forward and swung his fist, aiming at Xander's jaw. He was sure that he had him, but Xander heard his footsteps as he got closer. He dodged the blow with ease. He wasn't fast; Alex was slow.
"What a surprise! If it isn't the almighty Alex!" Alex grinned, hearing those words.
"Alex, what are you doing?!" Herald looked up at his son, panic setting into his eyes.
"Are you still not emitting any mana? Don't tell me you're still a Static??" Added Xander. He had been called a Static many times, but coming from Xander, the words hit differently; it felt personal.
Alex armed his fists, ready to send the next blow.
"Alex! Stop!" his father shouted, his scream startling the boy.
"Look! Even your own father is telling you to stop. You're a failure, can't even defend your poor old dad. Come on, condense some mana with those mittens you call hands and come at me!" With each word, Alex felt his resolve fading, as if he could never match him.
Xander's cane started moving on its own; it wrapped around Alex's hands and pulled him to the ground. It reeked of unrefined ink.
Alex tried lifting his hands up, but it seemed as if his arm weighed more than the whole world. It felt odd.
How could this small cane with this level of mana hold back my hands? My body isn't reinforced with mana, but this thing shouldn't be able to hold me down this much.
"Please, let him be; he's just a child. I'll double the rent for tonight!!" The dignified Father, the person Alex looked up to the most, was begging. He was begging this monster to spare his son's life. This was too much for Alex. He felt a boiling rage filling up his body.
I'm sick of this. Everyone is always protecting me. Fighting my battle in my place.
I'm not going to stay a failure. I'll show them. I don't need mana or magic to survive. I won't be a burden my whole life!
With one last effort, Alex tried lifting his hands; they started moving. He was going to win this fight through sheer will.
"Fine, but make it triple," barked Xander before hitting Alex with his oversized boot to the face. Alex saw his father running towards him. That was funny; he didn't even think the man was able to run. His vision blurred, and he couldn't hear what his father was saying.
Alex woke up to the feeling of a wet towel sliding across his face. Zora, Alex's mother, was cleaning and wiping the dirt off his skin, crying all the tears she had left.
"Why do you keep doing this? You know you're not as strong as you think you are. Do you enjoy making us worry?" Zora held her son's face, tears streaming.
She was right; this was the third time Alex had been beaten up this year. Alex didn't care when people badmouthed or mocked him, but he refused to let anyone harm his family and friends.
"I'm fine, Mom... I'll get him back." Alex still looked upset about the earlier encounter.
"Over my dead body! Are you out of your mind! Say something, Honey!" shouted Zora, looking at Herald for his confirmation.
"You should listen to your mother, Alex. Fighting is for brutes who can't control their emotions. Look how you ended up. Words could have diffused the situation earlier." Explained Elder Herald, as calm and collected as he always is, seeming unfazed by what had happened.
"Yeah...yeah..." Alex replied while getting up. " Look where that got you, upraising dirt on your knees." His words were as sharp as daggers. He scrutinized his father's face, waiting to see a reaction he never got.
"Alexander, you shall not speak to you..." She didn't finish her sentence because the door was already closed and Alex was long gone.
He walked down the streets as fast as he could; his determined pace got him to his second home, where he had so many good and bad moments, where he always hid when things got too heated at the library: Malena's house.
The house was small and appeared to be poorly maintained; it had long since lost its former glory. When they were kids, Alex and Malena used to run around the fountains, climb up the rocky walls, and role-play as pirates on the golden roof and eat around the giant metal chimney. Since Malena's father passed away, they couldn't afford the astronomical cost of maintaining the place, so the fountains were turned off, the gold was sold, and all that was left was the old, cold, and rusty chimney.
Alex went straight to Malena's room, not even acknowledging Celia, Malena's Mother, who was cooking in the kitchen. She didn't say a word. She looked at him with pity in her eyes, she saw him lying on the floor at the library.
"I have a plan," whispered Alex while bursting into Malena's room like it was his own.
"Hahaha, after what you just pulled, I'm not following you anywhere," answered Malena while still reading her book.
"I'm serious this time," replied Alex with an almost menacing tone.
"Okay, hotshot, I'm listening," she snarked, finally looking up from her book.
"We're going to the forbidden archives." Time felt like it had stopped, and they looked at each other for a couple of seconds, the words still hanging in the air.
"Are you for real?" said Malena with a smile beginning to form across her face.
"Yes, I can't beat Xander empty-handed. He's coming back tonight to collect rent. I know there are weapons in there, and if we're lucky, we could find some of the prestige Ink they always talk about. And all I need you to do is keep guard."
"I'm in, let's go!" Malena jumped from her bed, ready to take on the world.
"Wait, it's too risky right now. We leave at Dusk, but you know what will happen to us if we get caught." Whispered Alex, making sure the door is closed.
"Okay!" She jumped back on her bed as quickly as she got up.
"Meet me next to the old well, we'll go in through the back," added Alex, keeping his voice down, before leaving.
On the way out, he locked eyes with Celia; her gaze felt like she was looking into his soul. This quick visit meant they were up to no good. Just as she was about to speak, Alex left the house.
///////////////////////////////////////
"Pssss... pssss," the sound made Alex jump in place. This wasn't the first time he snuck out. This well was the rendezvous spot for all the kids at nighttime, but knowing what they were about to do, he was on high alert.
Malena appeared from the shadows. Her smile was the only thing that gave him a break from this suffocating situation. They were about to enter the forbidden archives, where even Clan Leader Klatz wasn't allowed to go.
"You scared me," whispered Alex, relieved to see her.
"I know, that's why I did it," answered Malena. "C'mon, let's get moving before my mom finds out I left."
They headed towards the back of the Grand Library, a two-minute walk that felt like an eternity. Malena and Alex have known each other since the beginning, literally. They were born on the same day and have grown together like brother and sister. They've gone through these flowery streets hundreds of times, but tonight was particularly beautiful. While going up the hill to the library, the moon was so big that it looked like it was about to swallow the mountains. Alex stopped in his tracks to enjoy the scenery that nature had gifted them.
"Hey, you'll have time to enjoy yourself after we've done the rule-breaking," barked Malena, snapping him back to reality.