A Cosmos Beyond Docility

The stale black omnipotence of the crowd in front of me. The ebony blanket adorned with shattered glass stretched out infinitely in front of me. The dull din of the onyx Zeppelin roaming like a hungered beast fills the near devoid hall.

Lustrous gilt fills the mould glazed corners and ivory from erstwhile beasts creates a hazy smoke across the grey stained walls. A murky azure and jade sphere sits on the farthest wall a pale grey metal plaque classifies it as ‘Fore-bearer Terra’.

I slowly chew the innards of my lips and trace the lines in the lint and sediment-stained floor. I glance to the chain around my foot. In old terms i would’ve been labelled a ‘street rat’ but the doves call us ‘trail crossers’; I steal to live. But... They’re always watching, i can’t even micturate without being eyeballed.

I glimpsed to the lofty steel door, as raucous metallic fuss from outside disorientates my ears. Then a ringing squeal like a rat in pain sounds as the door swings open. The hoard in front to me turn their heads. A man in grey-clad uniform strides in, eyes filing through everyone in the room before focusing himself on me.

A boisterous yell in a tongue not familiar to my ears left his red nose crowned lips. He gestured to me with a glisten of outrage reflected into my eyes. His face an unhealthy shade of crimson. Then my thoughts were stopped when a younger calmer man yanked me away.

I had made it to the place all thieves and criminals dread to go. The grey room. The unknown man hauls me into the room and sits me on an iron chair. Cold and tight metal shackles quickly grip my wrists and the same with my legs and neck.

The young man, I say young because he looks to be a few years older than myself, walking towards me mockingly swinging a metal studded whip, cracking it while smirking cruelly at me. My throat hurts, and I barely managed to cough out the word “Water.” And the guy about to whip me to death, froze. Glaring down at me, eyes full of rage.

A loud crack resonated through the room and a hot, jagged pain diffused throughout my body. Another deafening crack, and more searing pain. It hurt so much to the point I couldn’t even react.

“You want water?!” He yelled. I said nothing and didn’t cry out like he wanted me to. “I’m even going easy on a shitty brat like you! And you want WATER?!” He scoffed, a wild and crazy look gleaming in his eyes; a twisted psychopathic lust for blood.

A metallic fluid filled my mouth making me feel queasy. I spat out the fluid welling in my mouth, and it splatters all over his shoes. Giving a death stare, as he looked down to the red stains littering his shoes like roses. He let out a manic laugh.

He looked at me, the veins on his face bulging with an emotion I cannot infer. The shackles came off and his left hand clamped around my neck, lifting me off the chair, blocking my airway. I silently gasped for air, I refused to make a sound as that would only lead to this crazy bastard to want more of my cries for help.

I let out a gargling chuckle as blood continues to fill my mouth and I spit it onto his face. Laughing at his rage. He doesn’t scare me. Nobody scares me as much as father. The rim of my vision fades to black, the guy about to murder me then throws me to the floor and kicks me in the stomach. Leaving me winded and bleeding on the floor as he leaves. I guess the thought of killing a child is too much for him. What a pussy.

The floor is cold, and I see a woman walking in, she’s the nurse that stops me from dying, her name is Kari Blank, she always comes in with marks and bruises on her body, I heard she was trafficked from the Woman’s Federation and was forced to serve under the hirscher of the doves. “Oh dear Nazan, you can’t be pissing the young doves off. You know they’re fragile minded!” I couldn’t even give a comeback because my body hurt so much. But I think she understood that I would have died if I didn’t act tough and aggressive.

The door banged open and the dove who had gotten me in this state charged in, and kicked Miss. Blank away from me. He then kicked her in the stomach, and I reached to grab his other leg. However he noticed me, he didn’t stomp on me like I anticipated he would. Instead he grabbed my arm and tossed me over and onto his right shoulder. Before carrying me out the room and into the corridor that seemed to stretch forever.

He passed the cell I was staying and my cellmates looked at my beaten and bloodied body. With sympathy, I caught a young girl’s eyes, I say young but she was definitely older than the dove carrying me. She’s a friend I made, she was crying, and tried to reach for one of my hands. Yet she was too far away to even touch my fingertips.

As I was carried I caught the eyes of some other doves, they had cruel twisted smiles on their face, as if pleased to see me so bloodied and beaten. I recognised a few faces and I sneered at them. Of course in return for my action I got a punch in the face. However the dove carrying me kicked them and gave them, what I suspect to be a death glare. I couldn’t see since I was facing backwards.

I was carried to, what I assumed, was the end of the corridor and into an elevator, a button was pressed and we went up. If that’s even a direction in space. The dove then placed me down on the floor. He sat next to me and pulled out a coms tab. “I heard you want to leave us.” He spoke. Still looking down at his comms tab, he tapped a few buttons, pulling up my file. “Nazan... isn’t that a girl’s name.” before he said. “Why do you want to leave?” I gritted my teeth but didn’t respond. “Hey, kid. Talk to me.” I stayed silent before saying.

“What do you want me to say... sir?” he snorted after I used the honorific. “Why do I want to leave? Well who wouldn’t after being beaten up like that!” He stayed silent. “I want to leave because the poor like me cannot survive.”

“Where would you even go? The bitch’s area?” he asked.

“At least they don’t whip and choke children.” I muttered, bringing my legs to my chest.

The next thing I knew, I was pulled onto the Dove’s lap. He sighed. Now I can see his face properly, he had soft skin, he didn’t even have a stubble. It’s shocking he has time to take care of himself. A soft, but defined jawline. His skin tone was lighter than mine, but was still tanned. He had soft and fluffy-looking strawberry blond hair. I then got caught in eye contact. Hazel blue eyes, filled with some sort of pity. Like looking at an injured pet. It comforted me a little. But not enough to make me entirely feel relaxed in his presence.

“That was my twin who hurt you. He’s on the torture squad. I can’t stomach beating a child up for something they can’t help.” Now that he said it. I looked down to see there was no blood splatter on his clothing, only the stains from my body. Plus he wasn’t gone long enough to change his outfit either, they wear a lot of clothing.

“So, where are you taking me? To the execution room?” I retorted, I wanted to see how ‘nice’ this guy was. There was no way he was actually this nice, not since he kicked Mrs. Blank who’s nothing less than an angel. She may have been a spy but she’s a wonderful person. I would go as far to say she’s like the mother I never had and anyone who hurts her will be hated with every fibre of my being.

He then started to pat my head. “There, there.” I wanted to lash out, I wanted to push him away. Yet my body refused to move.

His grip was like iron.

The door of the elevators opened and I saw a guy identical to the one carrying me. He locked eyes with me and I recoiled into the second twin in fear. He just scoffed and got on the elevator. Pulling out his comms tab and talking in another language.

Then the elevator came to a stop and the doors slid open. I was met with two doors, one reading ‘Necromancer Brothers’, and the other reading ‘Death’s Office’. Wait... the necromancer brothers? I glanced around in fear and tried to struggle out the grip. But my efforts would later go to waste.

Unfazed the nice brother, well that’s a stretch, the least terrifying brother, carried me into the room. I had gotten myself into serious shit. One of them is a psycho and the other is a degenerate. It’s easy to tell which one is which. One had an expressionless face and the other... curries favour and attacks once all defences are down.

Maybe this fate is better than death.

I was carried into the room and was immediately met with a high-class healing system, and my wounds where instantly healed. It was so fast I can’t even describe what happened. If I did I would.

I turned my now functioning neck to the other twin. “So... about that water...” He walked towards me, and grabbed my chin, wrapping his fingers roughly around my cheeks. “Hey now Demir-”

“Shut it Cemil. This fucking brat.” Cemil.. so that’s his name, this will make telling the two apart so much easier. “He has a name you know, it’s Nazan.”

I feel grateful he’s backing me up even though he’s probably doing it to get my guard down. “So he’s an Orospo?” He said, I could hear the mockery laced like poison in his voice. I think these two aren’t too bad. Not compared to the master, however Demir’s god awful attitude and language has definitely got to go.

I heard a woman cry out. “Ugh, will you get rid of that?” Demir said, irritated. “I’ll let you do it, give me the piliç.” He snatched me out of his brother’s grasp. Cemil looked pissed. If there was no context to this situation you’d think they were fighting over me rather than some woman locked up in a room.

Demir looked at me, it was a much softer expression than what he was showing me earlier in the grey room. “Time to get you some water piliç. Some food too. Those fucking ‘masters’ killing everyone through starvation. Tsk.” Maybe Demir wasn’t as psychopathic as I thought.

That’s when a screaming woman covered in burn marks and open wounds was dragged by her hair by Cemil. “DON’T’ JUST STAND THERE YOU SICK FUCKER! H-” She was promptly cut off by a hard kick in the gut by Demir. I turned to look at him and he had a disgusted look on his face. “Take this kızı-ara back to where you found her.”

He looked at me and sighed. “Don’t worry. You won’t become like that little piliç.” That was mildly comforting. However... Not when he says it though. The woman silently writhed in Cemil’s grip, trying to break free. “Maybe degenerate was an understatement.” I muttered to myself. Demir looked down to me and nodded in agreement. “A vast one at that.” He added.

I rested my head on his shoulder, I couldn’t even lift a finger I was so exhausted. “Hey, hey. Don’t fall asleep yet piliç. You still need to eat.” I chuckled a little, he reminds me of my mother. She escaped to the silver crow.

“Piliç, is it true you want to leave the tri-doves.” I don’t really want to answer that. But what I’m really wondering now is why the hell he’s calling me a chick. “I want to see my mother again.” I mumbled.

“What was her name?”

“Celestine Kanarta.” He sighed.

“The one that slipped through our fingers, I knew you looked familiar.” I guess I do look like my mum. “She was luckier going there. Their prison system might be better, but young men like yourself will be oppressed over there.”

“I’m willing to take that risk.”

“But now that you’ve told me this, you’re never leaving this room.” Was this bastard threatening me. “You’re just a piliç, you’re too young for that federation.”

He placed me down on the sofa and walked off.