“The only thing you’ll get from me is pity,” the star man replied. “Are you that afraid of me, Colonel? You chained me, you threw me in the dungeon. Who are you without your cliones? Nothing but a coward…”
“Shut up!” The silhouette waved the flaps of its cloak and pointed the same device that had just been used to melt the wall at the prisoner.
On seeing the shiny weapon, the star man just grinned. “You will never be able to do this. The clans will figure out what has happened and then you won’t escape punishment. Your power is as fragile and shattered as your will, Colonel.”
At that point, the lioness thought she heard a light ringing, as if a crystal pendant had broken. The room was illuminated by the brightest green flash.
The memory started to ripple and then began to collapse like a house of cards. Fragments of events from different places and timelines got completely mixed up in the lioness’s head. It seemed that the entire life of the newcomer floated before her eyes. Isata felt scraps of his feelings flying through her and echoing in her with sadness, regret, and hope. She could still hear Kriy’s voice clearly in her head. “Forgive me, it is wrong to end the story so abruptly, but my powers are running out. I am losing control of my own mind.”
The white veil fell from Isata’s eyes, as she came back to the reality. The star man was still lying in front of her. The lioness saw the reflection of the fading memory in his eyes. Kriy’s hand fell to the ground helplessly. The lioness lay down next to the newcomer to share her warmth.
“The bracelet absorbed most of the shot energy, but, unfortunately, it got broken. That is why I appeared that high,” Kriy said, looking the lioness in the eye. “You are very kind,” he whispered gratefully as he stroked her behind her ears. Isata purred, willing to ease his pain. “Could you do something for me?”
The lioness bowed her head in agreement. Kriy put his hand on her forehead for the last time, and Isata felt his power flowing into her and gathering into a warm lump under her heart. She closed her eyes, falling asleep.
CHAPTER 1. THE BREAKFAST
Deus ex machina is the same thing as a rabbit in a hat.The only difference is that the first one appears on its own, while the second has to be pulled out.
A morning should start with a healthy breakfast. This Omlion knew for sure. It was seven in the morning. Omlion could have slept longer, but he wondered whether he would be able to make that smoothie whose recipe he had found the night before in a famous bartender’s blog. So, he quickly wrapped himself in a cozy kimono robe and ran downstairs to the kitchen to look for the ingredients.
“Ameed! Aameeeeed!” Omlion called drawlingly.
There was no one in the kitchen. Patches of sunlight shined on the jars with various herbs and exotic varieties of coffee. Noise of cars could be heard from the street, and there was а bunch of keys and a note on the counter with the cash machine.
I flew to Tibet. I will be back in few days with souvenirs. Watch the shop and stay out of trouble. New neighbors are arriving today, they are friends of mine. If they come over, treat them to our specialty coffee.
It was not the first time that Omlion was taking charge of the place. So, he knew exactly what to do. He brushed his teeth, smiled to the blonde guy in the mirror, switched on the coffee machine, opened the cash box, wiped the counter, and put a can with “Tips” written on it.
The house where Ameed and Omlion lived was one of those typical Utrecht houses. The three-story building in a classical Dutch style faced the canal and consisted of a coffee shop on the ground floor and residential rooms on the first and second floors. Ameed had a soft spot for his tiny place. When Omlion grew up a bit, the old man taught him to cook, run the coffee shop, and make the best coffee in Utrecht.
Omlion changed his clothes and opened the shop itself and windows on the ground floor for the aroma of fresh coffee to bring in the clients. Then, he sat down on a tall bar stool at the counter, took out his tablet, opened Food Network to check the smoothie recipe in detail, and started to wait for visitors.
He did not have to wait for long. Hardly had Omlion found that very recipe, when the doorbell rang, and a girl looking the same age as him entered the coffee shop.
“Hey! Anybody home?”
“Hello, I am! Please come in!” Omlion replied in a friendly manner and looked at the young guest with interest.
She looked totally like a cartoon character. When the girl talked, her cute oblong face with prominent cheeks seemed to live its own life. She was wearing a nice pale pink dress, and her long hazel hair was pulled into a neat ponytail with an elastic with fancy pompoms. Her sharp nose as well as her loud and fast speech were the signs of an extremely energetic temper.
“You are Omlion, right? Dad told me about you. I am Arewa, I have recently moved in nearby.”
The girl extended her hand, and Omlion immediately shook it. “Oh! Exactly, Ameed told me that a neighbor would be coming. However, I didn’t expect you that early.”
“Early to bed and early to rise…” Arewa declaimed with her nose in the air, but immediately burst out laughing.
Omlion also laughed. “Makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise. Would you like some coffee?” He put a large white mug on the counter.
“Thanks, but Dad doesn’t let me have coffee, he says it turns me into a nuclear reactor without cooling.”
Omlion hardly knew how nuclear reactors operate, but he removed the mug.
“I’m going to make a tamarillo smoothie. Tamarillos are tree tomatoes. They are tasty, healthy, and definitely don’t explode.”
“But do tomatoes grow on trees? Tomatoes are vegetables.” Arewa looked at her new acquaintance in disbelief.
“To be honest, these aren’t really tomatoes. They are more like fruit. In fact, these are sweet and sour berries. They grow in our roof garden. Would you like to see?”
“Lead the way! You are the boss here.”
“Let’s go, I’ll close the door!”
While Omlion was fiddling with the keys, Arewa was inspecting the store.
The entire room was divided into two unequal parts with a carved oak counter. There was a cash machine on it and a million little things. Tiny teapots, figurines, clay whistles, and candles of all shapes and sizes. In the hall where Arewa was standing, the walls were decorated with thin wooden panels featuring images of animals, plants, and celestial bodies. Some of the pictures were quite realistic, while others were clearly the fruit of the artist’s imagination.
“Are you coming?” Omlion asked, opening the counter.
“Yeah,” the girl answered and followed Omlion up the narrow wooden stairs to the first floor. “And how old are you?”
“I’m 10, and you?”
“It is inappropriate to ask girls this question,” Arewa wrinkled her nose in an emphatic manner.
“Why?”
“To be honest, I don’t know, it’s just inappropriate and improper, that’s all…” The girl stopped and looked at the ceiling pensively. “What room is this?”
The kids went up to the second floor – a bright room with straw mats and small paper lanterns on the walls.
“This is our dōjō[1]!” Omlion said proudly, running out to the middle of the room. “Ameed teaches me martial arts here.”
He got into the fighting stance, took a deep breath, and made a lightning-fast kick with his leg. The rubber flip-flop slipped off the boy’s foot, cutting through the air with a whistling sound, and flew