Prologue

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The Orphanage
An hour after Fritz's death

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The single candle which flickered on the table’s surface was insufficient to illuminate the entirety of the Orphanage’s dinner hall, but it was enough to give everyone present a general sense of direction and help discern each child’s position. Many of the faces revealed by the dim light still carried the signs of crying, and from time to time a muffled sound would spread through the hall as one of the children fought back another bout tears. Decisions had to be made.

Present in the dining hall were the oldest children or those who have shown wisdom above their age, or some are simply there because they were curious and others didn’t notice their presence. They all gathered here at the behest of Mary. She didn’t clarify the reason but it didn’t take a genius to figure out what was the purpose, so soon after Fritz passed away. Right now she was standing at the head of the long table, with the rest of the children sitting or standing on the sides.

“We need to decide what to do now.” Mary spoke to the other orphans. Her voice was still shaky, from fear as much as from sadness. “I know it is hard right now to think about anything else besides grandfather Fritz’s death, but we must talk about this.”

She raised her voice by the end of the sentence and gave each child present a stern look that was still somehow visible in spite of the lack of light. Clenching her fist at her chest she continued to speak.

“Other gangs will come for us. It is no secret that the only reason they have left this island alone for so long is because they feared grandfather. He defeated them many times and eventually they all stopped trying, but that doesn’t mean that they gave up on it. Now that grandfather is dead it is only the matter of time before some gang decides to stake their claim. So we need to agree on how to react when that time comes.

“Now, I know I am the oldest, but I also know that many of you have been through a lot before coming to the island. I have spent all of my life here and I never had to fight for my survival like many of you did. That is why I am asking you for your thoughts. What do you think we should do now?”

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Location: The Orphanage

One hour after Fritz' death
Oralee hides in a corner. She was only 10, but she wanted to know what was going to happen to them. She had felt safe with Fritz around, but now that he was gone, there were so many things that could go wrong. She was scared, yet she wanted to help at the same time. Growing up with a mother that didn't want her made her mature faster than she should have, and she didn't understand why children could still laugh and play. The solemn little girl brushes her white hair from her face, as she listens to Mary.

“We need to decide what to do now.” Mary spoke to the other orphans. Her voice was still shaky, from fear as much as from sadness. “I know it is hard right now to think about anything else besides grandfather Fritz’s death, but we must talk about this.” Oralee silently agrees with her. Fritz was the one that protected them all, and now they didn't have his protection.

“Other gangs will come for us. It is no secret that the only reason they have left this island alone for so long is because they feared grandfather. He defeated them many times and eventually they all stopped trying, but that doesn’t mean that they gave up on it. Now that grandfather is dead it is only the matter of time before some gang decides to stake their claim. So we need to agree on how to react when that time comes.

“Now, I know I am the oldest, but I also know that many of you have been through a lot before coming to the island. I have spent all of my life here and I never had to fight for my survival like many of you did. That is why I am asking you for your thoughts. What do you think we should do now?”

Oralee frowns in thought, her young, yet imaginative mind creating all sorts of scenarios. She slowly slips away from the corner, a small idea appearing. She slowly raises her hand. "I can create illusions.... Well mirages more accurately..."

Dirt Town Orphanage, 1 hour after Fritz' death
Sarus slipped through the crowd to the front, standing with the oldest children in the orphanage; his pale,smooth face showing nothing but a slight frown in the flicker of candlelight. Truth be told, Sarus had allowed himself some time to weep in private before going to the hall. Fritz had been good to him and it was a terrible thing that had happened, but it had happened and now they would have to deal with the aftermath alone.

After one of the younger girls, Oralee, stepped forward and made her abilities clear; he decided to do the same before giving his suggestions on what to do. He spoke smoothly and seemed to draw out every S that came from his mouth "My body is toxic, a bite can lead to a nasty burn or worse. I can even bottle it if need be. I can supply everyone with poisons for their blades, I think we'll need it."
Before continuing, Sarus looked around at everyone to see if he had caught their attention. Then he spoke again "We need to show these gangs we are not to be trifled with, fear and respect kept them from attacking us when Fritz was...here. I propose we show them we can do the same, strike Stalwart and her gang before they gather up the strength to attack us, we show the other gangs we're a force to be reckoned with and perhaps gain some more influence ourselves. Fear is the only thing these gangs understand so we should show them we are something to be feared." After suggesting their course of action, Sarus took a step back to allow anyone else who wished to speak to step forwards. While he did truly believe this would make the gangs less willing to immediately raid Asylum Island, he did not plan to stop there. If he played his cards right , the dirt town orphans could rival the most powerful gangs in the city given enough time.

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The orphanage
An hour after the Old mans death

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A shiver ran through Dog as Mary spoke, a single bead of sweat running down his back like a cold finger on his spine, causing the young man to grit his teeth into an even bigger grimace then he held before. The stench of death still lingered in his memory, the disgust it brought about mingling with the other acrid feelings, sorrow, anger, fear, to leave a swirling pit in his stomach that sickened him to his core. His hand had begun to shake since the Old mans passing, a noticeable sign of his distress, so he crossed them over his chest to cease the movement, propping his back up against the wall of the dining hall as he listened in.

He frowned in thought at Mary's plea, life outside the Asylum was hell, had been hell, and was not something Dog looked forward to seeing again, as he would undoubtedly have to. With the Old mans death, the fragile tranquility of the Asylum would coming tumbling down as the waves of chaos come crashing in to tear this place asunder. Something in Dog had urged him to run, to take off like a thief in the night and seek some other refuge from the coming storm, but the Old mans last words lingered and had begun to take root in Dogs mind. Be there for each other. And here he would be.

"Fear is the only thing these gangs understand so we should show them we are something to be feared."

Dog pushed himself off the wall and marched forward til he stood behind the younger boy, giving him a good cuff around the side of the head at his suggestion.

"And would you be taking responsibility for the little ones who'll get caught up in all this violence? 'Cos mark my words, there'd be no reprieve for any of us if we strike out at Stalwart, or any of 'em gangs for that matter." He growled menacingly, whilst locking Sarus with a stern gaze. Most everyone had a gift it was true, some quite blessed that they might stand a chance against one or two of Stalwarts goons, but the discrepancy in experience was what irked Dog about Sarus and his suggestion. They were just kids after all.

Dog attempted to hold his gaze for a moment more before softening his look, he had been too harsh, and it wasn't quite like him to lash out, let alone speak out in front of so many others. He attributed this to his grief over the Old man. "Look, I know that you're just trying to do right by us, but we can't rush into this." He added, clasping the other boy on the shoulder briefly, as a sign of camaraderie. In all honesty Dog was tired, he wanted this night to end, to awake to a new day in hopes their worries would just melt away with the morning.

Mourning quickly became something Ziv wasn't really fond of. Many of the others stayed by Fritz's bedside and wept, but the feeling of being with others at the time didn't sit well with the teen, so she opted to find her peace in her room, on her bed with one of her class books in her lap. The familiarity of the words on the page brought her a sense of comfort, even though she felt like bawling her eyes out. She vividly remembered Old Fritz helping her with the subject of plants, mouthing the explanation word-for-word along with his voice in her head. It was sad for her to think she'd no longer hear his explanations ever again.

The minutes crawled by very slowly. She gazed at the book, at the wall, at her own hands. Ziv felt that she was feeling a little better, now that she took the time, but there remained a sore ache in her chest as she rose from the bed and walked back out of her room, making her way slowly to where the other children were. She deliberately took on a slow pace, bracing herself for the cries of the younger children in the dinner hall.

When she approached, she took a deep breath and pushed her glasses up higher onto the bridge of her nose.
I wonder whether Fritz knew this would happen. Did he plan on us depending on ourselves? Ziv thought curiously as she crept past the smaller children, reaching the front just as Mary began to address them. Sniffling and soft sobs could be heard from behind her, so Ziv turned back a little and brought the younger child to her side, squeezing his shoulder and sharing her warmth in hopes of offering comfort.

The others began to speak and, from what she could feel, were a little divided on their opinions. "What do you think we should do now?” was a much more loaded question than Ziv thought it could've been. But she chose to keep her mouth shut until she heard what everyone had to say. Viper seemed ready for a fight, Dog sounded like he wanted them to bide their time, and Oralee was...well, Ziv wasn't really sure what the younger girl had in mind. But maybe using mirages wouldn't be so bad.

"I really don't think we should leap at the chance to attack, like Dog said it may put the younger ones in danger. If we could just take our time, try to trick the gangs into thinking Fritz is still here until we can hold our own, it would leave us with..." she trailed off, eyeing the kids beside her.
"...l-leave us with fewer casualties."

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Location: The Orphanage

One hour after Fritz' death
Oralee nods at what Ziv said. "Yes!" she cries when Ziv explains what Oralee was trying to say. "That's exactly what I was going after! We can't have bloodshed, because of how young some of us are, but they still don't know that Fritz is dead yet. There are rumours that Fritz is on his death bed, but no one knows for sure! That's why if they come close to the orphanage, I can create a mirage or illusion of Fritz as if he's still alive! That'll give us some time."

She looks around at them, wisdom in her eyes. "If we play this right, then we can get through it with no casualties on our side, and hopefully no bloodshed."