People screamed. They scattered like fish after a fisherman shot a harpoon into the river.
Somebody bumped into Minah as they hurried off, yelling, “Help! Help!”
Harin pressed close against Subin and grabbed her hand. “You had to keep talking about the poorly maintained lamps,” Harin cried. “It’ll be your fault if a vampire gets us.”
“There aren’t vampires here, only in the movie,” Minah said. Though she had to admit to herself being in darkness unnerved her just as much as anyone else. Even if there aren’t anything as scary as vampires wandering around this part of the city, there could be other things like hellhounds or simple criminals taking advantage of the frightened pedestrians.
“Stay calm,” a man ordered. Minah stretched to see a paladin riding a horse through the street. A slim lantern hung from his saddle and light up in a small circle around the mount. “It is just a simple technical error that’s affecting the street lights across the neighborhood—nothing to be concerned about. It will be fixed soon. Until then, I advise you all to remain close so that I might protect you if anything happened.”
Everyone around Minah sagged their shoulders. A man said to his fidgety wife, who looked ready to flee, “We’ll just wait until the next carriage comes. With the paladin here, we’ll be safe.”
Minah didn’t share the sentiment. “If the entire neighborhood is affected, no carriages will come. They’ll avoid this area if they think it’s dangerous, or if anyone is willing to risk it, there’ll be people clamoring to get on.”
Subin gazed up at the black sky. “It’ll be time for me to sleep soon. I have tutoring in the morning after all.” She looked at Harin. “We’ll walk home. We live not too far from here. Even in the dark, I don’t think we’ll get lost.”
Harin let out a sniffle, her eyes wide and glimmering in the moonlight. “I guess—I guess if you’re dropping me off at home, I’ll feel safe.”
“I’ll walk home too,” Jaeyun declared.
“Can’t you drop me off at home first?” Minah said.
Jaeyun inhaled sharply. “I really need to get home though. I already stayed out later than I planned.”
Subin snorted. “You sound like me. You aren’t usually so strict.”
Minah clenched and unclenched her first. What am I so worried about in the first place? Waving her hand, Minah said, “I’ll be fine.”
“You probably will, but still,” Subin said. “Jaeyun, Minah can’t cast magic. You can. It’s your responsibility to keep her safe in times like this. If you don’t step up I’ll tell everyone at school you let a magicless girl walk home by herself.”
“But—“
Subin didn’t let him finish his thought. “See you at school.” She and Harin turned around and headed north, leaving Jaeyun and Minah behind.
“I guess we should get going,” Minah said.
Jaeyun sighed, and while the paladin had his back turned, they slipped into a different street.
“You’re not usually in such a rush,” Minah commented. It’s strange. Jaeyun is usually the most easy-going of the group.
“I’m just tired,” Jaeyun excused.
“You said that already,” Minah said. Jaeyun did cast a bit of magic during school, but still, he was acting too strange for it to be just that. On the other hand, Minah didn’t think of Jaeyun as a dishonest boy. Perhaps he didn’t sleep well the night before on top of the training or something like that.
Then Minah suddenly felt bad for making Jaeyun hang out with them all afternoon. To make up for it, she offered, “If you’re too tired to walk home after dropping me off, you can just sleep at my house.”
Jaeyun shook his head. “No. Besides, isn’t your mother going to be furious if you bring a boy home?”
Minah scoffed. “Like she’ll find out. She’s traveling to all those port cities in the east again and writing articles on… I can’t remember. I could tell her I lit the apartment on fire and she’d still be too busy to read the letters I send her. Come on, it’ll be fun sleeping over. I’ll cook you dinner too.”
For a moment, Jaeyun seemed to consider it, but then he shook his head again. “No, I really need to get home. Let’s hurry. The faster I get you home safely, the faster I can go home myself.”
Thirty minutes later, Minah and Jaeyun found themselves still enveloped by darkness. The buildings loomed like fingers erupting from the ground, and Minah felt like she stood on the palm as the fingers closed in. No other people could be seen. They had all gone home and locked their doors.
Minah stubbed her toe on a piece of pavement sticking out from the stone. “Ouch! Jaeyun, are you certain we’re heading in the right direction?
Jaeyun pointed at a street sign. “Yes, we passed this street on the carriage going to the movie theater. Don’t you remember?”
Minah squinted but the letters appeared as squiggles to her, illuminated by nothing but moonlight. Can Jaeyun really see in such darkness? “Well, none of the street lamps here are functioning either.”
“I guess the blackout has spread. Let’s keep going.”
They walked for another hour, but still, nothing changed. “Jaeyun, are you sure you know where I live?”
“Yes, I’ve dropped you off before,” Jaeyun insisted. “If you’d rather lead, go ahead.”
Minah rubbed her arms, though she didn’t exactly feel cold. She felt just creeped out. She almost asked Jaeyun to spell up a ball of fire to light things up, but then she remembered how exhausted he seemed.
“Look, this isn’t working. I’ll try knocking on someone’s door. Perhaps they could give us directions, or even shelter for the night if they’re feeling generous,” Minah said and bounded up to a house. She knocked on the door five times. Nobody came to the door. Either they already fell asleep, or they just couldn’t be bothered.
Minah turned around and headed back to her friend. “Maybe we ought to turn back. We could try to find Subin’s house, and maybe she could call a carriage from there or—“
Jaeyun reclined against a dead street lamp. When he heard Minah talking, he got up then lost his balance.
“Jaeyun!” Minah rushed to catch her friend. “Do you feel ill?”
“No, I’m fine.” Jaeyun straightened and took Minah’s hand off his arm. “Let’s just keep moving. We’ll get to our house eventually.”
“I’m pretty sure we’re lost,” Minah said. “You should sit.” Minah led him to a bench, but he didn’t budge.
“No. I just need to get home, alright?” His voice came out breathy and strange compared to the friendly, upbeat voice that Minah got used to.
Minah glanced around for anything that could help them—a paladin headquarters—despite her distrust of those haughty people—a map that might tell them their location—then she thought she spied shapes moving in an alley. “Hello?” she called out. “Hello? Is anyone there? My friend and I really need your help.” Minah shouted louder, “Hello?”
“Stop,” Jaeyun said. “I don’t think they’re just folks taking a stroll in the middle of the night. They’re surrounding us.”
The silence lingered. “Jaeyun, I don’t hear anything.” Then she contemplated if they’d both been imagining things. She opened her mouth to ask Jaeyun if he’d like to keep going or turn back, then he suddenly lurched and pushed her.
Minah fell onto her side with a thud! “Ah, what the heck?” She craned her neck to see a knife held out in the exact same place she had just been. A man stood grasping it, his face twisted in viciousness. He stabbed again, but Jaeyun swatted his arm off target and grabbed the man’s face. Fire exploded from his palm and seared the man’s skin.
He screeched, and a repugnant smell filled Minah’s nose. She scrambled to get up then felt a hand close around her hair. It yanked her up by her ponytail.
“Got you,” a second man said. He held a knife to her throat. “Just give us your wallets, and you’ll be free to go.”
Jaeyun was already breathing hard as if he’d run a lap around the school grounds. When he spun his head, Minah noticed his skin glossy with perspiration. “I don’t walk around with much money,” Jaeyun said.
“Don’t give us that,” a third man said as he stepped into view behind Minah and the brute holding her. “I recognize your uniforms. You children attend the best school in the city.” He came around to leer at Minah. “What about you, girl? Even if you aren’t carrying coins, there are other things you could do.”
“Don’t talk to her like that!” Jaeyun stomped over and reached for the man, but the man spun around and elbowed him in the face. Jaeyun skidded back, holding his nose.
The blade felt cold against Minah’s neck. Perhaps I’d be smarter to tell them I had my wallet in my bag’s left pocket—though they’d inevitably get violent when they realized how poor I really am. But seeing them beat up her friend made her blood boil. Gritting her teeth, Minah spat, “You recognize our uniform, yet you still thought you could rob us?”
Bringing her foot up, Minah stomped on the man’s foot so hard he yelped and dropped his knife, which tumbled harmlessly onto the pavement. She spun—letting him rip a couple hairs out of her scalp—and punched him in the side of the head. He staggered, but to his credit he remained conscious.
The third man swung at her, but Minah dodged it. She extended her second and third fingers and jabbed the man’s eyes out. His hands planted on his face. “Argh!” he groaned.
Minah snickered. She might not have developed magic once she transitioned into a teenager like the rest of her gifted peers, but she was still a student at Nacheon Academy. “I’ll consider you having made a mistake and give you a chance. Go home,” she said.
Rather than taking her advice, the man who had been holding her picked up his knife and stabbed. Minah jumped back and readied a kick when something suddenly caught her ankle—the first man who she thought Jaeyun defeated.
He lied on the ground, his face partially burned off. He should be unconscious. Minah struggled to break free, but he held onto Minah’s ankle like a drowning man clutching onto a life preserver.
The knife plunged into Minah’s shoulder. The pain ebbed through her body, and Minah’s knees buckled. “Ouch…” she cried. Her attacker stood face to face with her, the bloody knife in his hand. He made to stab again.
“Jaeyun, don’t just stand there! Do something!”
Her friend seemed to snap out of his stupor and flames danced to life in his hands. It burned bright enough to light up their section of the street as if day has come.
The man before Minah immediately set his sights on Jaeyun and dashed at him, knife outstretched. The flames leaped from Jaeyun’s hands, and the man exploded in flames then fell lifeless right in front of Minah, his empty eyes boring into her.
Heat licked at Minah’s face. “Ah!” she cried and scampered back from the corpse on fire.
She’d never seen a man die so quickly, or at all really, outside of a hospital. In fact, the last time she witnessed someone die, it was her father…
Of course accidents happened during magic training all the time, but Jaeyun had never casted magic to kill, and their athletic uniforms are all enchanted to prevent injuries as much as possible.
Not feeling anything still holding onto her ankle Minah realized the guy must’ve let go in shock. She stood up, the wound on her shoulder throbbing. She grabbed Jaeyun’s arm. “W-we should go.”
Jaeyun didn’t budge. Minah shook him. “Jaeyun, please. Let’s go.”
The boy tore his attention from the burning man and stared at her. “Jaeyun?” Minah called again. “Jaeyun?”
Jaeyun stood perfectly still. Then his eyes turned crimson. Just like the vampire in the movie.