Chapter 238: Kestrel And Ren’s First Date
Ren sat in his secret room. All the doors and windows were closed tight, making the room kind of dark. At his desk, he carefully cleaned a small set of metal rings.
The screens of his two opticomputers shone bright. On one screen, notes and messages kept coming in from friends in the Royal Guard. On the other, voice messages came in from his secret partners.
"After so many years, it’s finally time to make our move."
"There’s loads of weapons and bullets. My buddies here are always set to go, even if it means getting hurt."
"We just took control of a new Polluted Zone. This time, I kept all the big guns and gave away only a broken one."
"And the guy from the Tower was cool with it?"
"The guy from the Empire took some ashcredits to look the other way. You know, these folks don’t really care about the Empire’s army, just about getting more for themselves."
"It’s the same with us. We’ve got lots of healing pods and a lot of healing juice. To keep all this, I spent almost all my money. The dude who came to our place wanted so much."
"Basically, we’re set. Let’s make it happen!"
Everyone talked with serious faces, some even laughing because they were so hyped.
They’d been pushed around for too long. Now, they were super pumped, like a big fire roaring up high.
Some were busy putting up all sorts of info - stuff about the Tower, the Queen, and all the big shots of the Empire.
"Here’s the newest map of the Tower, with all the ways out marked. A lot of the top guards are with us."
"We can change the guard times for the Imperial Nexus whenever."
"It’s go time."
"Totally."
"Our buddies are super eager."
"It’s been tough waiting all these years, everyone’s super done."
Everyone was chatting.
The chat on the screens kept moving, each person being big deals in different hidden groups. Ren knew some of the voices, like Cockroach from the far lands, and Brandon who was inside the Imperial Nexus.
He even picked up the voices of Olivia and Rakan from the Royal Guard. They tried to hide how they looked and sounded, but Ren knew them by how they talked.
More and more people joined in, like a snowball getting bigger and bigger, with even noble folks like Rakan helping out.
Everyone’s emotions were on fire, all the pain and suffering from past years now felt like hot lava hiding beneath the surface. So much hate and so many wrongs. The death bodies and remains of people they loved had created a storm in their mind.
The rage was at its tipping point, impossible to hold back anymore, set to blow up any second.
Ren brushed off some rubble from the workstation and held a small ring between his fingers to check it out.
The glow from the opticomputer screen lit up his face and bounced off the tiny metal ring he was holding. It was like two half-finished rings. The open ends were really smooth, and they were decked out with shiny gems.
"Why are you messing with that now, you lovesick dummy?" his red blade, his constant companion, kept bugging him while he was focused.
"Just let him, just let him. It’s fun to watch," the black blade on the shelf said, as it opened a weird eye that moved up and down its own blade.
Ren bent his head down, searching for the perfect spot to leave his mark. He wanted to pick the right area on the inner ring to carve a name into it.
"I haven’t given her much," Ren mumbled, fiddling with the incomplete rings. "I’m not even a great boyfriend already. What’s done is done; at least I should be the one to make this."
The eye on the black blade went from the handle to the blade’s end and back, trying to get a better look. It talked, "What’s the use? Do you even have the guts to ask her to marry you? I bet the Kraken will get there first, put the ring on your finger for you. All you’ll do is turn red and say yes."
The screen’s faint light stopped on Ren’s hands, revealing the first signs of him getting irritated.
"So you’re the deputy of the Royal Guard and a spy for the rebels, and you still find time for this? Why not wait a few more years to be with her?" the red blade mocked.
"If either of you ever had feelings for someone, what would you give them?" Ren questioned them.
Obviously, the red blade would never have feelings for other "people," let alone other "blades." Still, it liked talking to Ren, so it chose to play along.
"I’d give them the tastiest blood ever, the best thing ever is awesome blood," the red blade replied.
"I’d show her all the cool memories I have stored up, hehe," said the black blade, breaking into a little laugh.
"So the deal is, you give the people you love the most valuable thing you have," Ren said, still working on the ring. "I’m super short on time, so I should give her my most valuable time."
"Wow, you’re pretty good at talking about love. You’ve even got me convinced."
"Next time you go on a date, you need to bring me. Why do you always take that blood-thirsty one? Have you even dated before?"
"Why would he bring you? I’m at my best when I’m fighting."
"You don’t get the whole love thing, do you? You just like watching him do awesome stuff, right?"
"Who wouldn’t? All the tendrils and hand-cuffing stuff, who wouldn’t love that?"
"Guys, stop fighting. I can take two blades with me at one time, remember?"
In the dim room filled with all kinds of sharp weapons that looked kinda scary in the dark corners, Ren was totally into his work, the sound of his tools echoing in the room.
His two opticomputer screens kept lighting up, always buzzing with notifications, while his blades kept chatting away.
The room was filled with a mix of noises. In the middle of all that, Ren suddenly heard someone say his name—a sweet voice from the street down below, blending with the voices of the crowd, only calling out once.
Ren’s fingers stopped. The next second, he was on the balcony of his upstairs room, leaning over to look down.
His building was pretty high, like twenty or thirty meters, but he saw Kestrel right away in the crowd below.
Kestrel was standing near the road, looking up. When she saw Ren, she started to smile.
Right then, Ren felt his heart melt a bit.
When they first met, he had only seen her for a second in a crowd. Back then, Kestrel was walking through a hall, her face blank like she was wearing an amazing mask made of fine china.
The Kestrel back then hardly ever smiled, didn’t really care about anything, not even her own safety. But now, she was smiling at Ren, her eyes sparkling in a way that was super hard to look away from.
Ren jumped down from the tall building, landing like a pro and standing right in front of Kestrel.
An old man nearby was startled and said, "Is this how kids date nowadays? So flashy! Why not use the stairs? Jumping down from that high up could give me a heart attack."
"Are you free tonight? I’d like to take you out," Kestrel said. She was as direct as always, never messing around. "We haven’t actually gone on a real date, have we?"
"A date sounds fun," the dagger near Ren’s lower back said, its voice sounding kinda strange. "We were just talking about dating and stuff."
Ren’s hand moved behind him, grabbing the dagger’s handle to make it stop talking nonsense.
"Sure, where do you want to go? I’m all yours," Ren replied.
Today, Kestrel was dressed super chill. She wore a comfy skirt that just barely covered her knees, showing off her slim legs. She had on a beige sleeveless crop top and comfy walking shoes. Her long black hair was tucked back, kept in place by a little hairpin.
Ren could tell Kestrel had dressed up special for their hangout. His hand stayed behind his back, his fingers touching the pair of rings he had with him. The rings weren’t finished yet and didn’t have all the designs he wanted to add. He hadn’t even figured out what he was gonna say to Kestrel and the moment wasn’t perfect.
He thought it was too soon to give her the rings, so he tucked them back into his pocket. Even thinking about it made his heart race, and he felt his face get hot.
"I don’t really have a special place in mind. Just want to walk around with you," he said.
Kestrel thought a sec, then spoke. "Well, if we can, let’s get some yummy stuff."
Ren took her to a super busy night market.
The capital city of the Empire was probably the safest place to be, packed with people living super close to each other.
Away from the quiet, fancy areas near the Tower, the night market in the area where regular folks lived was packed and lively. There were places selling snacks, people selling all kinds of stuff, and even folks looking to hire workers. Some even sold stuff that wasn’t exactly allowed, stuff from the Polluted Zone.
Sneaky kids ran through the crowd. Kestrel knew to watch her stuff here; a lot of these kids were pickpockets because they had no choice.
In this not-so-rich area, not many people could afford a full meal. There weren’t tons of food places, and the prices were usually cheap—mostly traditional homemade snacks. Ren guided Kestrel through the maze-like streets, knowing all the best places to get sweet treats.
Soon, Kestrel had a paper bag full of all sorts of sweets.
She was munching away, her cheeks puffed out, her face looking super happy because of all the sugar.
Finally, they sat down at a dessert stand on the side of the street.
"This dessert is the best around, you gotta try it." Ren cleaned a bowl and spoon and set them in front of Kestrel.
"I’m full, though." Kestrel patted her full stomach.
The lady who owned the stall, a super friendly middle-aged woman, brought over two plates of the dessert.
Kestrel’s eyes lit up. She felt like she could squeeze in a little more if she tried.
She took a big spoonful of the cold dessert and tasted it, closing her eyes to enjoy the sweet flavor melting on her tongue.
Far away by the Tower, fireworks started going off, probably from some fancy party happening tonight. Kestrel didn’t have to go to those stuffy events anymore and could just enjoy the show.
The fireworks were really pretty, shooting up and exploding like a bunch of flowers in the sky. Everyone looked up to watch.
During the loud booms, Kestrel leaned over and quickly kissed Ren.
The kiss tasted like the dessert, all cool and sweet—a kiss that tasted like chocolate.
Golden fireworks were falling down, making people around them go "wow." But for them, it was just about that kiss.
When the fireworks ended and the sky got dark again, people started walking and talking. Kestrel and Ren finally moved apart a little bit.
"Got to go to the Tower tomorrow," Kestrel said, still eating her dessert. "The Queen wants to see me."
Ren’s smile kinda froze.
"The Tower?" He sounded unsure and talked quieter. "Could you maybe not go? I’ve heard some weird stuff about the Queen lately. Like, she’s not letting people into her private rooms, even Commander Luther. She’s acting kinda weird."
Kestrel kept eating, mumbling, "I go there a lot; it’s no big deal."
She did visit the Tower often, spending time with the Queen.
Ren thought for a sec, then made a quick hand sign, whispering, "Things at the Tower are kinda shaky right now, not safe... there are plans."
Kestrel put a finger on his lips to stop him.
"Don’t say more." She looked serious as she stared at him. "I know you guys are up to stuff. If you’re gonna do something, just don’t tell me."
Right then, her eyes got super clear and focused.
She was a beta, set to meet the Queen at the top of the Tower. If she clashed with the Queen, any secret stuff that Ren shared might’ve been picked up by the Queen if Kestrel wasn’t careful.
So Ren just couldn’t tell her anything, no way.
Kestrel had to go to the Tower because, when she had looked into what was going to happen, she saw a tiny glimmer of something good there.
Suddenly, more fireworks had gone off in the night sky, filling the air with loud bangs.
Kestrel’s finger had stayed right on Ren’s lips; she didn’t say anything more. What she wanted to get across, the feelings she had, were sent straight into Ren’s mind through their skin touching, all while the fireworks lit up the sky and made a bunch of noise.
