Void Domain, Book 07
Chapter 001
Late May air in Florida felt sticky and viscous. Like wading through soup.
It was almost nauseating to breathe in.
Air up in Montana was dry. Even in the middle of winter with snow covering the ground, the air remained dry.
Eva’s first breath after teleporting in had felt almost like she was drowning. Even after spending a few days wandering the streets, her skin still felt far too moist. Like she was in constant need of a shower. She had this constant sheen coating her like sweat. Even on top of her hands and legs, parts of her that didn’t sweat in the slightest.
It was the same as always. No evil slime monster lurked the streets of Florida, spreading its foul excretions around the place. No mad wizard had shown up in her absence to turn the air to soup. Eva had simply become too used to living in the far more arid climate.
While she might have just gotten used to it and was biased in the northern climate’s favor at the moment, Eva decided that she liked Montana better. At least as far as the air was concerned. If only the snow and cold could go away, it would be perfect.
Thoughts about the weather and odd hygiene problems aside, Eva was quite displeased with how her miniature vacation was coming along.
She had considered a stop at the old veterinarian’s office to say hello, but decided not to in the end. Eva walked around Brakket Academy entirely without shame or fear. The thought of walking into Doctor Thompson’s office without any gloves or blindfold just rubbed her the wrong way. Entering with them on was just as bad except in the opposite direction. She had passed by just to check that they were still in business and left without entering.
Without anyone else that she cared to visit in the area, Eva had plenty of time to focus on her primary reason for stopping by Florida.
Frankly, she wished it wasn’t taking so long.
“What is wrong with people?” Eva shouted out to the empty street.
The emptiness was part of the problem, but only part. It never used to be this difficult to get some gangbangers to follow her into back alleys. Or even to find them already engaged in mugging someone else–or worse.
“Am I too old now? Is that it?”
She was wearing her gloves and blindfold again as she didn’t care to scare off any potential scum of society with bright red eyes and claws. Maybe it wasn’t that she was too old. No one wore pants, gloves, long sleeves, and a blindfold this time of year in Florida. Maybe she looked too much like a cripple. Did rapists and thieves have standards against the disabled?
Maybe the seedier parts of town had changed locales after a few years. Police crackdowns or better squats opening up had forced some people to move in the past.
Clenching her fists in frustration, Eva decided to swing past a nearby trailer park. One of the worst upkept areas in town that she could think of that she hadn’t already wandered past.
By the time she made it to the park, she had managed to calm down. At least enough to play the part of the scared little girl.
“Scooby!” Eva called out, keeping her voice just timid enough. “Here boy, come back.”
Her old hospital held plenty of abandoned equipment. Things like tools, medical equipment, and items to assist the disabled. Wheelchairs and walkers, for instance.
After two days of no luck, Eva had decided to add a walking cane to her routine. It was too strange to see a blind girl walking around–even timidly–without bumping into at least a few things. Tapping the walking cane around the ground in front of her should throw at least some suspicion off.
Eva pursed her lips together for a weak whistle.
Making noise was important too. Not so much noise that it frightened off any would be assailants, but enough to draw their attention in the first place. In the past, she had often acted as though she had lost her parents. Being blind gave her a different though no less valid excuse.
“Scooby, where are you?”
Two humans sitting out on lawn chairs were laughing at her. Not so loudly that they were obvious about it, but Eva could see their motions as clear as day.
Sadly, neither got up to follow. They were far too absorbed with whatever they were smoking. She couldn’t actually see anything other than the motions. Eva was once again relying on her sense of blood to navigate, but even if she had been blind for real, the smell was unmistakable.
With a heavy heart, Eva finished her patrol of the trailer park.
Not a single person following me, she thought with a sigh.
Catching sight of a few circulatory systems behind her, Eva slowed her walk. Not much, but enough that it wouldn’t be difficult to catch up to her.
She might have jumped to conclusions just a moment too soon.
Eva recognized the two smokers from the trailer park, led on by a third that she hadn’t seen as she walked by. All three were the burly, muscular sorts.
Not a problem for Eva, she had faced far scarier opponents even before school had started.
“Hey hey, where you going girl?”
“Finally,” Eva hissed under her breath. Drawing her hands up to her chest and hunching over slightly to make herself look smaller, Eva turned around and prepared to channel Shalise. “M-my dog ran away. I c-can’t find him and now I don’t know how to get home.”
She would have tried some tears, but doubted that it would be very effective with the blindfold in the way.
“Your dog, huh?” He glanced back at the other two. “Don’t worry, my boys will help you find him.”
Eva tried to keep the frown off her face. So far, she had twelve separate people honestly try to help her find her dog. Twelve people who had steered her away from dark alleys and had been nothing but kind while she led them on a wild goose chase.
In the end, she had led them to a subdivision before ‘recognizing’ the area and running off towards her ‘home,’ thanking them for their help as she ran.
“Of course,” the lead guy said, “we are going to need a little payment first, you know?”
One of the guys behind him let out a short burst of a laugh as he leered at her.
Eva almost sighed in relief. She had her suspicions before, but that almost confirmed that they weren’t going to be the altruistic sort.
Rather than sigh, Eva tensed up. “W-what kind of payment?”
“Payment,” he said with a laugh. “I know a place where we can talk about it, why don’t you follow me for a bit, huh?”
“B-but my dog,” Eva said, turning slightly away from the group. Last chance, she thought.
“Yo, one of my buddies just called me up,” one of the smokers said. “He saw one of them seein’ eye dogs down the street. Said he’d pack it up and bring it with him.”
The guy in the lead shot his ‘boy’ a look. A sort of ‘what the hell kind of fifteen year old would believe that load of garbage, when were you supposed to have time to call, what if she runs off now?’ kind of look.
At least, that’s what Eva assumed the look said. She was thinking much the same thing. Or did she look younger? She was trying to make herself look as small and nonthreatening as possible. Maybe they thought she was only ten.
“You found Scooby?” Eva said, perking her voice up a few notches from the frightened child it had been a moment earlier.
The smoker just shrugged at the leader. “Sure thing, my buddy said its name tag said Scooby right there on it.”
The leader pressed a thumb to his forehead and shook his head slightly. “See? Everything is fine girl.” He clapped a hand on Eva’s shoulder. “Come on, we can take you to your dog.”
With only a modicum of resistance, Eva allowed the men to lead her away.
Contrary to her expectations, the men were not leading her back towards the trailer park. Eva decided that not going back was probably for the best after a moment of thought.
The walls in the trailer park were probably not the most sound proof things around.