The Lion Heart

MY WAY OF living was a form of survival. While it wasn’t my first choice, it became my only choice. The ‘Street Stragglers,’ as we were called, were nothing but a group of hungry and desperate kids living off what we could find or what we could steal. Those I associated myself with on a regular basis saw me as a hero, but I felt like I was far from it. I was just a seventeen-year-old fugitive who was quick with her wit and light on her feet. Supposedly, that’s what made me so hard to catch. Despite the lack of feeling toward the heroism awarded to me, I wasn’t blind to what I was capable of.

I hid between a dumpster and a pile of old, black garbage bags. It wasn’t the nicest, nor was it the best smelling hiding spot, but it was better than being caught. I’d managed to earn a bounty worth more than ten thousand Kroan, and anyone who laid eyes on me frothed at the mouth just at the thought of catching me. Honestly, I felt that amount was insulting. The quantity of merchandise and money I’d stolen was double Lord Royal’s asking price—a price that would never need to be paid. It was highly amusing to watch those better off than the rest of us dream about my imprisonment just for the money. It was even more of a motivation to stay out of their reach.

Thanks to Lord Royal, there were women and children that were starving because husbands and fathers couldn’t earn a decent living. Though, not everyone lived as horribly as we did. The guard, for example, were the equivalent to the Old World’s Middle Class, and those were few. Most that went hungry were often homeless teenagers, and that was where I came in. There were several of us, each with our own skill, that roamed the streets and kept the even less fortunate as fed as we could.

Though ‘Street Stragglers’ was a collective nickname for the kids that were homeless, there was a chunk of us that were more known than the others. We were awarded such notoriety from being the most skilled at finding or stealing goods with the intentions of keeping anyone and everyone alive that we could. However, it never came easy. With the guards starting to plague the streets with more and more armed men, things were getting tricky, but to say I didn’t like the challenge would be a lie. I was the leader of the thieves and rightfully so. All the other kids came to me for advice and trade. Not only did I steal, but I also made deals. It was my consistent way of survival. There were times where I hated it, but most of the time, I loved it. The trades were fair, too.

Kids traded supplies for food and food for supplies. It was a cycle, and it was a cycle that worked. Those that knew and respected me the most knew me as Ghost. The nickname was awarded to me when I became known for my abilities to steal the most valuable and precious items within the market.

While my specialties were thieving and trading, there were others I associated with that had their own skillset. First, there was Jack Ulrich. He policed and protected Stragglers.

However, while he protected, he also disciplined. He kept those that needed it in line. With that, he had his own kids that assisted him in his occupation. He was an average height of six feet, and he was one of the oldest members of the Stragglers at eighteen. His hair was as dark as a raven while his eyes were the opposite. They were bright blue and almost seemed inhuman. Those that followed him always held a fearful respect for him while I found him to be charming when he wanted to be.

The second was Alice Pence. She was one of only twelve female Stragglers outside of myself, seventeen but slightly older than I was, and known for her impeccable weaving. Her tricks and knots were handy when we wanted to hunt in the nearby plains, or if we wanted a decent trap to trick the guard during our raids of the market. Her hair was long, wavy, and the color of chocolate. She had eyes that were sweet and soft like the brown eyes of a child’s teddy bear. Her gentle and softened nature was accentuated by her short stature. She stood at about five-foot-three. While she was meek, there was something about her that made me believe she sported a secret mean streak when she needed to.

Then, there was Dexter. He was known as our night owl. He served as our surveillance for those who slept at night. His insomniac ways and secretive nature made him the best candidate for the job. He wasn’t tall, but he wasn’t short either. Dex was about five-foot-eight with hazel eyes and copper-colored hair. Despite his age of sixteen, he was surprisingly mature. At the same time, maturity and resilience was a must to survive in this world. Dex held a seriousness about him, too. Most of the time, Dex irritated me with his need to compete with my authority over the others. If he wasn’t so fit for his assigned role, he would’ve been dismissed months prior.

Fourth, there was Wesley Jean. He was an actor of sorts with a light Old Australian accent and a smile that melted the iciest of hearts. Soft and sweet with an occasional hardened edge, Wesley was one of my favorites among my gang of thieves. He had his quips, and he had his clever ways without making a deal out of it. His auburn hair always hung in his face no matter how many times he forced it back, and he was—just the same as Alice and me—seventeen. His eyes rang with honesty and the color of muddied mountains, but that didn’t keep him from holding a light within them.

My love for them was as strong as it would have been if I’d had a blood-related family of my own. They were my home, and they were some of my best friends. However, there was a fifth member of my regular crew that was becoming more and more noticeable as time went on. His real name was Harley Rose, but he preferred the name Leo. His hair was a golden blond, and he had eyes that matched the color of emeralds. Lions always held a special place in his heart. They were courageous, and they never gave up their fight. The name suited him. Leo was gifted and showed the most potential within my crowd of newbies. I knew that at just fifteen, he’d become something else.

Through the streets of the Royal Order, I hid. The guards lost me at the dumpster, but I preferred to take extra steps just in case. The Royal Order wasn’t the only place around. It was just the worst and the most prominent among the others. The world was full of them—mostly inhabiting the world’s once major and rural areas. Booming and blossoming cities were now downsized and degraded into simple markets and trading posts. Although most of the areas were transformed from glorious pavement to cobblestone for the aesthetic and emphasis on the changing atmosphere, the houses remained the same. That is, if it could be afforded.

The Orders held their own systems within places from the Old World to create peace and sanctuary for the New World. The only consistent aspect between the Royals were their semi-royalty system. Important names that lived during the age of the Old World held their titles over the Orders in the New World just as they did in the medieval times, but rules varied.

There were Orders that housed strict, militant followers, and there were Orders that housed friendly and common followers. The Royal Order was a harsh dictatorship that held the Highest Seat. They oversaw everyone and everything. Despite the Orders of the New World having a collective individualism, the Royal Order was the ultimate law and enforced the idea that all families that held ownership over an Order must refer to themselves as ‘Royals.’ Most of the time, those who oversaw the different Orders of the New World differentiated themselves by last name and kept ‘Royal’ as a title. To my knowledge, the Royal Order’s reign over the New World lasted for over twenty years. If it were possible for them to all die off or become subject to tyranny, a new Order and set of Royals would take the Highest Seat. While the idea sounded like a dream come true, that’s all we ever believed it to be. It was just a dream.

When I was certain that I was no longer being tailed, I skipped happily back to the dumpster I claimed as my own. I tossed the backpack full of food and other necessities into the seemingly empty hole and smiled. Raiding for myself was the best. There were no catches, no deals to fulfill, and there wasn’t any pressure to outdo myself. I slammed the lid shut roughly and threw myself on top of it.

“Great! You’re here!” Jack’s voice rang happily as he walked up to my dumpster.

“What can I do for you?” I looked Jack over as I allowed my feet to dangle over the edge of the dumpster lid.

“I need some arrows and a spool of wire.” He tossed a sack full of food in my direction as he spoke.

I caught it with a grin and hopped down from the lid, “what do you have for me?” I dug through the bag and continued to grin as I found a series of fresh fruit from my favorite food stall in the market.

“Is that enough? The boys and Alice need it for traps. They want rabbit.” The casual tone in his voice made me shrug.

“From you, it’s plenty. This will keep me happy for about a week.” I handed the bag back to him kindly before turning to the lid.

“I was told by one of the others that you’ve raised your prices.”

“I have. The guards have been less than easy to get around lately, so it’s more work. More work? Higher prices. I don’t run a charity,” I said firmly as I watched the expression on his face change.

“Ghost, it’s just as hard for us to get you what you need as it is for you to get us what we need,” Jack narrowed his eyes as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“I beg to differ. Jack, I have a bounty. You do not. I haven’t been caught, but a bounty makes it more difficult. You know that.”

Jack rolled his eyes, “we respect you for what you do, but if you raise prices, we’ll be forced to find certain things on our own. That leads to more captures and more attention. You don’t want that, do you?”

I rose my eyebrows at the sound of the cockiness in his voice. “I do what I can with what I have just as you do. Do not start something with me that will make the others suffer.”

Jack sighed in defeat, “I’m sorry. It’s just difficult to keep everyone as happy.”

“Well, you’re their boss. You can figure it out. If I didn’t love you and your boys, the prices would be double what they are now, so keep that in mind before you try to say I’m unfair next time. Survival is a business, but there’s enough of us to make everything work itself out. I’m not worried.” I shrugged and grabbed what he needed.

As he took it, he sighed again, “thank you.”

“Since the guards want to give me such a hard time, and you want prices to go back to normal, I need more of yours to scatter. It’s easier if I know one of yours is around, but they seem to be few compared to what Lord Royal had lately.”

“So, more protection means lighter trades? I can do that. They like the challenge. Yours need a good run. That favorite of yours is getting rusty. One of the boys had to pull him before he was snatched for good.” He started down the street as he spoke, and I chewed on my lip.

I shook my head at the news, “I appreciate the update. I’ll be sure to take care of it soon.”

“Keep the young ones away from the main part of the Square,” he offered as advice, and I nodded in acknowledgement.

“I will keep that in mind.”