Alix was completely dumbfounded. He had never been in a city centre before, and everything had caught his hazel-brown eyes.
Out in the distance, a gargantuan marble statue beheld him from the confines of a fountain. A man was sat astride on the back of a dragon that was heavily clad in armour, the banner in his hand looked to be billowing, but that was only the intricate detail applied to the marble. The banner held the image of two phoenix's sending up gales of fire, and from the dragons maw, flames began bursting out of it without warning.
"I-is that thing alive?" Alix shuddered, remembering Blackwing.
"No," Vaylor chuckled, "it's how it works. It's meant to do that every now and then in intervals."
Claymore drove the car up to a curb, and then three of them stepped out in silence. Vaylor instructed Alix to follow him, and then elucidated on how Claymore would be carrying their shopping.
Alix glanced at Claymore, wondering how such an…unimpressive looking man could be a tamer. He didn't care enough to ask him what he tamed, and simply ignored him the entire way, opting only to speak to Vaylor.
"So, where to first?" Alix said, darting his eyes about the place.
"That massive spire up there," Vaylor pointed, "the one with the huge letters on the glass."
Alix looked up and squinted his eyes, "'The Cave Centre.' Whys it called a cave?"
"Pragmatics. It's meant to hint at there being multiple different malls and stores within it."
Alix nodded with understanding. Looking around, he realised that Vaylor was right, a lot of people really did look like him. There were some people with only the grey in their hairs and without the red streaks that Vaylor had in his, while most had more in their full head of hair.
These dragon tamers must've been really busy, huh.
There was also the fact that the entire city centre was insanely busy. There was loud music being blared from multiple different stores, people performing on the streets and blasting some of their own music through speakers.
And then there were the vehicles. Alix could hear the low hum of a train from afar, and a robotic, monotonous voice would speak up every time it reached a stop. There were buses, trucks, people cursing and howling profanities as their impatience got the best of them.
So much noise… no wonder Vaylor wasn't so bothered
They had finally reached The Cave Centre after a long walk. The whole way, Alix had received stares that spoke of disgust, revulsion, and derision. He could still feel eyes boring into his back and judging him mercilessly. It was hard to shrug them off, and even harder to walk into the spire knowing that it would only get worse.
"What're you just standing there for?" Vaylor scowled. "Hurry up."
Inside the building, a myriad of stores on either side were beckoning him to come through. A confectionary store in particular had caught Alix's interest, but he was pulled away by Vaylor's firm hand.
"There, an elevator." Vaylor said, pointing ahead to two large metallic doors. "That'll take us to the clothing mall."
"A clothing mall?" Alix was puzzled.
"Aye, a mall specifically for clothes. There are many malls in here where the stores are put together by random, but there are those that are targeted towards something specific."
Inside the elevator, Alix felt like his heart was sinking as the capacious room moved upwards. It was strange, he felt like he was flying.
When they had finally left the elevator, Alix found a plethora of luxury stores that he couldn't even dream of being able to afford. It was a good thing he was walking beside a Lord.
Many of them even had names that sounded luxurious; Zalph Lawmen, Fooci, Spencer Marks, Gistapi, and Ummi. There was another one further ahead called 'Mula Academy.' Vaylor had instructed Alix to follow him into that store.
The air was acridic and overwhelming, somebody had sprayed too much perfume and Alix thought he'd die if he stayed in there any longer.
Vaylor watched him cough up a storm, and then said, "You don't smell any better, Alix."
Wow, thanks!
Vaylor picked up sets of clothes, and handed each one to Claymore, their silent acquaintance. By the time Vaylor had found one he liked, there was a large pile of clothes on top of Claymore's arms.
"You know, I thought I'd be the one to pick out my own clothes, Vaylor."
"A former slave has no tastes, your choice of clothes are safe with me. I'll assure you look dapper."
Vaylor picked out a white shirt and a long black robe. There were also a pair of pants that served to match with the robe, then a tie, a pier of shoes, a pair of underwear, and a black belt that was adorned by a myriad of scintillating crystals.
Alix was pleased with the clothes that Vaylor had picked out and went to grab them, but Vaylor quickly slapped his hands away.
"Before you put these on you're going to take a courtesy shower."
A courtesy shower?
"What the hell is a courtesy shower? Why do I need to take one?"
"You need to take one because you stink, you fool. Claymore, explain it to him."
Claymore cleared his throat and spoke without stumbling on his words.
"Courtesy showers are a part of the stores hygiene policies. Legally, everybody is required to take one before trying on clothes from the store, that is unless you have taken one prior. Employees can assess this via machines that search for drops of water and soap in your skin cells, or just based on how you smell, and you…smell awful."
Alix sighed and sulked the whole way as Vaylor pulled him into a spacious room with a plethora of shower heads, stalls, and toilets. Each shower was separated by glass, and there were people in there actively cleaning themselves.
I have to shower with other people!?
"There's courtesy lotions, soap, shampoo, and fresh towels over there." Vaylor nodded towards a grey half-wall where mirrors were worked into the wall above it, and where a sink was built into the sickly grey bricks. Near the sinks, all the items that Vaylor had listed were sitting beside them diligently.
Vaylor also pointed to a bunch of lockers that weren't too far from the wall. A lot of them were occupied, and Vaylor cursed under his breath as he tried to find a vacant one. When he did, silent words of triumph could be read across his face. He stuffed the clothes in the locker and turned back to Alix.
"We'll be waiting outside. Don't be too long." Vaylor warned him.
When they left, Alix sighed. He took off his dirty rags and stepped underneath one of the showers. He struggled with getting the shower head to work, and just when he was about to give up and ask somebody for help, a violent surge of cold water beat against his skin.
Alix flinched and stepped away instinctively. He stretched out his hand and measured the temperature. It was still so cold that he felt like he'd turn to ice if he put his body back under it.
Alix sighed with relief as the water finally became hot. He stepped back under it and embraced the warm water like he would his mother. There was a bar of soap on the platform that supported the shower head. Alix grabbed it and scrubbed it along his body.
So much has happened in so little time, Alix thought. He placed the soap back, closed his eyes, and pondered for a moment.
So much in so little time…
It was hard to believe that Alix was once a slave. He had spent seventeen years of his life being obedient, being whipped, and being humiliated. He had met many slaves along the way, many of them perished under their labour, and others simply laid down and refused to get up as a whip siphoned their lives.
So much death, so much pain, and so much loss. It was ironic to him that the tamers called this the era of peace, they only knew peace because of their places in power. What about the tamerless, the slaves? What about their peace, and their freedom? Did it not matter?
Of course it doesn't
But now Alix had the peace and freedom that all the slaves didn't have. And best of all, he was a tamer. He no longer had to flinch under the crack of a whip, nor worry if he would receive his next meal. Now he could walk in luxurious stores and have outfits picked out for him, and also be permitted an education. Things were looking up.
But what about the slaves
Alix felt the same bristling legs of guilt creeping up his neck, and then Vaylor's words seeped into his mind. 'Do you envision a world where the tamerless can live freely? Or are you going to selfishly continue worrying about your own freedom?'"
Truthfully, Alix only went along with Vaylor because he had no choice. Without him, he'd most likely die and be crushed with ease in the Great Reset. He wouldn't have the peace he desired with the system The Voice created.
But now? He was beginning to feel some heroic pride. He had the power to help, and should the war come that's exactly what he was going to do.
"Yo, man, you good?" A voice called out from behind him.
Alix span his head around, and quickly dispersed the windows that had appeared as he opened his eyes. "Who are you?" Alix said.
"Woah! My bad, I didn't mean to startle you. You just looked like you were having…shower thoughts."
"Shower…thoughts?" Alix blinked. He could barley make out the speaker due to the water streaming down his entire face.
"Yeah, like depressing thoughts. Sorry, I haven't even introduced myself. The names Mayfor, Mayfor Mulliven."
Mulliven…where have I heard that last name
Alix reached for the word in his skull, piecing back conversations he had with Vaylor. A specific one had screamed out to him from a pile of memories—in that conversation they were standing outside of the spire as they waited for Claymore. Mulliven. Draconis Mulliven. It was the name of the last dragon emperor.
And Alix was now talking to his descendant.