Pathline, p.1
Pathline, page 1
Pathline
By
Kaede Lazares
Text Copyright © 2012 Kaede Lazares
All Rights Reserved
Table of Contents
1. Appreciation
2. Recall
3. Anomalous
4. Departure
5. Mercenary
6. Amicable
7. Precarious
8. Undeniable
9. Torn
10. Duality
11. Warning
12. Adversary
13. Pariah
14. Secrets
15. Choices
16. Strategy
17. Hindrance
18. Inimitable
19. Betrayed
20. Reminiscent
21. Outsiders
22. Darkness
23. Broken
24. Ordinary
25. Pathline
1. AppreciationShe stretched out with a long yawn, still under the covers, as Marcus got out of bed and headed for the bathroom. The early sunlight was already breaking through the gap between the curtains; she would have to get up soon. The room was nice, there was no doubt about that, the city didn't hold back when it came to honoring its heroes. Luckily for her they hadn't known who would be joining him in the suite for his stay. There was plenty to get through today, she was aware, but she was in no hurry to get started.
"Appreciation Day" she sighed to herself with slight derision. Rune had never held much esteem for Appreciation Day, not in its fifteen years of tradition, but today was for him and she would find a way to get through it all.
***
The world had changed its entire perspective in the last generation, since the supers had become commonplace. About ten percent of the human population possessed super abilities to some degree. Those showing true power were recruited into the military and government, or into powerful private corporations. Those whose abilities were less than stellar usually found uses for their powers in everyday work. Appreciation Day had been devised by the government as a way to get the population to support government and military sponsored supers. They wanted the people to love their heroes. It worked too. It seemed as if every year the Appreciation Day ceremonies got more elaborate. The crowds gathered for days in preparation, for the chance to take part in the celebrations and to get a personal glimpse of their favorite heroes.
Every year the government chose a super, a hero that they felt had best served the nation in the previous year. In reality the whole thing was a popularity contest. Sure, the heroes chosen were deserving of merit, but the whole thing was heavily biased. Technically, as the bi-laws were written, any hero who had served the nation was eligible for the Appreciation Day honor award. But the simple fact was that only Defender class supers had ever been honored.
When the supers first began to get notice the governments realized that they all seemed to fall into four basic classes or types of abilities. Subsequently, the classes were named after the basic abilities themselves. There were the 'Sky Walkers' who could literally walk on air, and were usually used for surveillance. There were the 'Runners' who possessed super speed and agility, and were mostly used for special maneuvers. There were the 'Defenders', the favorites of the public, who possessed super strength and invulnerability and were the most publicly utilized supers assisting in everything from private rescues to military assaults. Then there were the 'Wanderers', the least common of the super classes, they possessed the ability to move between locations in the blink of an eye. Maybe it was because they were the rarest class, maybe it had something to do with their type of ability, or maybe it was because they were most often used as spies, but Wanderers were heavily distrusted by the population.
***
As Marcus came out of the bathroom, showered and shaved, Rune forced herself to get out of bed. She still had time, she didn't need to go down until the beginning of the ceremony, but Marcus needed to be there early. The festivities were for him this year, after all. She smiled as she watched him dress, she may not have any respect for the true motives behind the ceremony, but she was happy for him. Marcus loved this kind of thing. Being a Defender, he loved to play the hero, loved to be loved. And the people loved him, that was certain; he was the obvious choice for the award this year by a landslide. Malik, as he was known to the public, was currently their favorite hero. He was featured in the press, sought out for endorsements, and even had his own fan club. Rune chuckled to herself as she pictured the reactions from the fan club section when they saw Malik walk up.
Then she sobered up at the sight of the ring on her finger. She still couldn't believe Marcus had convinced her to get married. It had all been a blur. They had managed to keep their relationship a secret so far, but she knew he wanted to go public, especially now that they were married. Married, the thought still seemed foreign to her. They'd been romantically involved for several months now, and she had agreed to be his guest for the Appreciation Day ceremony, but Marcus had grander ideas it seemed. When he picked her up two nights ago for the drive into the capital he took a detour midway and had somehow convinced her to elope. They had arrived into the capital yesterday evening as husband and wife.
"Laura?" His voice broke her out of her thoughts and she looked up from her ring to his face. She must have looked serious because he was frowning as he watched her. "I'm planning on announcing our marriage as part of my acceptance speech, you okay with that?" he asked, mild defiance in his voice.
She smirked in return. "As long as you get your award first, otherwise they just might take it back." She tried to keep her tone light, playful, but she was sorry to admit that a touch of bitterness seeped through.
The people did not love her, not that she minded, but they did seem to have come to the collective decision to disapprove of her existence. As a Wanderer she'd gotten used to people's distrust of her abilities, and of the supers who possessed them. She was good at keeping to the shadows, at keeping out of too much public notice, it was one of the reasons she was so good at her job. But sometimes the dislike weighed on her, more than she'd ever admit.
He sighed and sat down on the bed beside where she was standing rifling through her bag. He put an arm around her waist and pulled her down onto the bed with him. He kissed her lightly on the neck and said, "You underestimate people. So a few idiots dislike Wanderers, who cares? They don't speak for everyone. I think that most people would warm up to Wanderers if they knew more about them and everything they do for the world".
She chuckled as he moved on to kissing her along her collarbone. "I think you overestimate people Marcus, you've only seen one side of them; you've always been liked." She sighed, giving in. "But I still think you should be careful about telling the public about us, you can't predict the reaction it will cause."
He smiled at her and kissed her one last time as he got up. "We'll see" he said with one of his trademark charming smiles, as he pulled on his jacket and headed for the door.
She stared at the door after he'd gone, mixed feelings in her heart. She knew they couldn't have kept it secret forever but honestly she'd never thought their relationship would get this far. They were just such different people. She sighed again as she headed to the bathroom to shower. She hoped he was right, but she couldn't help distrusting his faith in humanity, he had never been on the receiving end of its hatred.
She wrapped a towel around her as she headed out of the bathroom, walking back toward the stand next to the bed where her bag was, but froze and gasped as she turned towards the large windows that lined the far wall of the suite. A man stood there, watching her from outside the seventeenth story suite windows. He wore a hotel uniform and as she watched, stunned, he pulled out a master room key and opened a door sized portal in the window frame. Put there no doubt for that very purpose, she thought angrily as he stepped into the room looking around.
The man cleared his throat, standing with stiff formality only a few feet in front of her. "I apologize for the intrusion madam, but the hotel staff has received reports that a pet is being kept in this suite."
She stared at him nonplussed, "A pet?"
He looked around her, a disapproving frown on his face. "Yes, a pet, and as I'm sure you know this establishment has a strict no animal rule" he continued. He proceeded to walk around the whole suite, examining items as he went.
She snapped out of her shock and tried to rein in her anger. "There are no animals here, as you can plainly see, so if that's all I'd like some privacy so that I can change."
He looked back at her, his disapproving frown deepening. "Very well, enjoy your stay madam" he said, with a cold edge to his tone.
As soon as he'd gone out the door Rune locked it after him, then went over to the windows and closed the curtains completely. Reports of a pet, she thought sarcastically, growing angrier. What bullshit. Someone at the reception desk must have recognized her the previous evening and told management. That's why he was really here, she thought bitterly, to check who Malik's guest was. She dressed as quick as she could, putting all of her things back in the bag ready to leave at a moments notice. She hesitated, she was there for him after all, she couldn't just take off. She left the bag on the bed, grabbed her jacket and scarf, and headed out. She didn't bother with the elevator, as soon as she was in the hallway she wandered into the street in front of the hotel.
The area was already packed, in anticipation of the Appreciation Day events. The hotel the event organizers had put Malik in was the best in the area, the Imperial, and it faced the city square where most of the day's events would take place. Rune stood against a street light, watching the crowd stream by, trying to calm herself down. She wasn't likely to be recognized out here, amongst the crowd, in her civilian clothes. There were few people who could pick her out of a crowd. As much as she tried to keep out of the limelight the fact was that she was one of the best Wanderers in the country, and the government and military often used her for important assignments. That sometimes meant press coverage, so her 'super name' was known. People would find out anyway, as soon as Malik gave his speech, but she was still unsettled. She'd hoped to keep it close. She knew they couldn't hide the marriage from the government, they had people who monitored the civilian names of all the supers in their employ, but she'd hoped to keep it from the public. As she stood lost in thought she was startled to hear her name mentioned from somewhere behind her. She turned halfway, still out of sight, to see who had spoken.
There were two Imperial employees standing near the hotel entrance talking. "Yeah that Wanderer from the news, that's what they were saying, that's who Malik had with him in the suite."
The other shook his head and replied, "Seriously? Of all the women he could have, he beds a Wanderer?"
The first laughed. "It's not just any Wanderer, haven't you ever seen pictures of her? She's hot. Besides, it's not likely serious, she's just probably Malik's flavor of the week."
The second seemed unconvinced and continued to frown. "I don't care. You'd never catch me with a Wanderer."
The first shrugged and laughed again. "Wait till the press gets hold of this; they'll have a field day." He looked at his watch and motioned back toward the hotel doors, "Break's over". The two headed back inside and out of sight.
She stood rooted to the spot, her hands shaking. They knew. The press would know soon, if someone on the hotel staff hadn't already called them. She found herself torn between anger and fear. Malik was front page news, but she'd never liked public attention. At least they don't seem to know we're married, she thought with some relief; that would definitely be worse. As the crowd started moving into the seats set up in front of the award pavilion Rune found that she couldn't get herself to move any closer. She stayed there by the streetlight, next to the food stalls at the back of the square. It was the farthest she could be and still be able to see the podium.
As the time went by she heard more whispers and rumors circulating amongst the crowd about her and Malik. And by mid-day, just before the start of the ceremony, she spotted a reporter asking members of the crowd for their opinions on the match. Most were negative or unbelieving; others dismissive like the first Imperial employee believing it to be just a fling. There were a few other comments amongst some of the men concerning her appearance, and their willingness to bed her. It was all she could do to fight the urge to wander away.
Finally the ceremony got started and the mayor got on the podium and gave his Appreciation Day speech, ending it with his introduction of Malik. The crowd went wild. It was a few minutes before it quieted down enough for Malik to speak. In that time Rune noticed that he seemed to be scanning the crown, she kept to the streetlight out of sight. Malik seemed to have a slight frown over his brow, but he immediately broke out a smile again as he addressed his fans. She listened intently but he never mentioned the relationship, although there was a moment were he seemed to hesitate in thought. When his speech was over the crowd went wild again and he was asked to join in the commencement of the days celebrations. Rune slipped away, between the crowd in the streets, and when she was sure she was out of sight she wandered straight into their suite.
She knew he wouldn't be able to get back for a few hours, but he'd be back before the evening’s press conference. She paced around the room for a while, attempting to maintain some semblance of calm. Did he know already? Had he heard the rumors spreading amongst the crowd? Or had the events kept him busy and shielded from it? She couldn't know, not until he came back. She certainly wasn't going back down there again today. After some time the combination of fear, anxiety, and anger exhausted her. She slumped into a sofa chair and lay her head down over her knees closing her eyes. She wasn't sure how much time had passed, but she was still in that position when she heard the key opening the door. She sat up as Marcus walked into the suite and closed the door behind him.
He paused at the door with his back to her and said, "I thought you were going down for the ceremony, why weren't you there?"
She could hear the hurt in his voice and put her head into her hands, sighing, as she replied, "I was there. I just stayed in the back, out of sight."
He turned to look at her, confusion on his face. "Why?"
She heaved another heavy sigh and looked up at him again. "Apparently the Imperial employs a Sky Walker" she answered, and proceeded to tell him about the day's developments.
As she spoke Marcus had taken to pacing the room, growing noticeably angrier by the moment. When she was done speaking she was surprised to find herself completely drained of emotion. As Marcus continued to pace around the room, mumbling obscenities under his breath, Rune felt her head pounding and realized that she hadn't eaten a thing all day. She got up from the chair and let herself collapse onto the bed, her forearm pressing against her forehead.
Marcus came over and sat next to her. "What do you say we get out of here?" he asked, stroking her arm.
"What about your press conference tonight?" Rune asked, somewhat surprised.
"Screw it. There's only one thing they'll want to talk about now anyway. You get our bags ready and head down to the car, I'd like to stop by the reception desk and have a few words with the management."
Rune was somewhat taken aback by this, Marcus was usually such a people pleaser. "Where will we go?" she asked, getting up after him.
"A friend of mine owns a secluded inn upstate, it's usually pretty empty this time of year, we'll go there." He looked at her, slight concern in his eyes, then turned around and headed out the door.
Rune still felt drained, and her head continued to pound, so she focused on the task at hand. Her bag having already been prepared she found it a pretty simple matter to gather up Marcus's belongings and get his bag packed. She grabbed the car keys from the desk, slung a bag on each shoulder, and wandered straight into the parking garage below the hotel. No one was around this time of day, so she was able to get into the car without issue. She lay back into the front passenger seat with her head against the glass, closing her eyes, and waited for Marcus.
It was another twenty minutes before Marcus showed up and got into the car. Rune noticed he had his jaw clenched as he turned on the car and pulled out of the lot.
"What'd they say?" she asked, mild curiosity getting the best of her.
"They apologized for the misunderstanding that occurred between their staff that allowed the matter to go public. Offered to put me up for free anytime I wish to return to the capital. Me. They made it a point of leaving you out of the whole conversation." There was an edge to his voice that Rune had never heard before, but he seemed to soften when he turned to look at her. "We should be there by nightfall, do you want to stop and grab something to eat along the way?" he asked.
She smiled; he must have guessed she hadn't eaten. "Sure, but better make it drive-thru, I don't think I have the energy for a sit down."
About half an hour later, once they'd left the city limits, they pulled into a drive-thru burger joint and grabbed some food for the road. As the light started to fade in the east the car wound its way through mountain roads, seemingly disappearing into a dense expanse of woodland. Finally, after the last of the sun had gone down, Rune noticed the lights of the small inn in the distance. Marcus drove up to the front and got out, leaving the car idling, and telling Rune to "wait here". After a few minutes he came back into the car with a set of keys on him. He drove around the side of the inn, onto a gravel road, to where a row of cabins lined the edge of the woods. They all looked empty; Rune figured there probably weren't many campers this time of year. Marcus parked the car in front of one of the cabins and opened the trunk to grab their bags. Rune stood a moment beside the car, looking around her. It was a beautiful sight. The edge of the woods seemed to have a slight glow from the lights on the cabins, and at the top of the road the lights from the inn seemed to pierce through the darkness around it. She took a deep breath of fresh air and followed Marcus into the cabin.
